The RCMP has reversed course after a policy forcing officers to use the Access to Information Act to get their own personnel and medical information backfired badly. So far in 2017-2018, there have been a record 331 complaints about the RCMP to Suzanne Legault, Information Commissioner of Canada. - RCMP spokespersonLisa-Marie Inman, the RCMP's acting chief of strategic policy and planning, says the change in policy is part of a larger strategy to dig out from the avalanche of backlogged requests from RCMP members, news media, academics and others. The RCMP's access-to-information and privacy office employs 65 people, most of them civilians; only 22 actually review ATI requests. The Canada Border Services Agency has also seen a rise in its backlog of unanswered Access to Information requests, now at around 1,500 cases.

Source: CBC News February 02, 2018 09:00 UTC