First Nations are voicing opposition to Ontario’s proposed legislation to change freedom-of-information (FOI) laws, saying they’re concerned it would reduce Indigenous communities’ ability to access information.

If the law change passes in the Legislature, the records of the premier, cabinet ministers, parliamentary assistants and their offices would no longer be subject to FOI laws, meaning members of the public wouldn’t be able to access them through FOI requests. 

On Monday, the Association of Iroquois and Allied Indians (AIAI), which represents some 20,000 First Nations citizens across Ontario, issued a statement condemning the move.

Provincial decisions affect First Nations’ rights, lands and environments, and FOI requests are “one of the few mechanisms available to First Nations and the public to understand how those decisions were made,” it said.

“Having access to this information, particularly if it’s a decision made by the premier or other cabinet ministers, or just understanding how those decisions came to be, is just part of good governance,” said Stacia Loft, the AIAI’s deputy grand chief and a member of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte.

“If First Nations don’t see that good governance is happening, that just exacerbates that issue of trust.”

Economic projects underway across Ontario — including in the mineral-rich Ring of Fire area in the north, and a future high-speed rail project between Toronto and Ottawa — have the potential to impact First Nation communities, Loft said, also pointing to the Green Belt scandal. 

The details of any decision that connects or intersects with Indigenous rights or treaty rights need to be available and accessible, she said. 

Why Ford’s defending the FOI move

On Tuesday, Premier Doug Ford defended the proposed changes, calling the current legislation “antiquated” and saying the Ontario government is bringing its FOI laws in line with laws in other provinces and the federal government. 

He stressed he wants personal information like calls and messages from constituents to be kept confidential. 

But Jessica Orkin, a Toronto-based lawyer who works in Aboriginal and access-to-information law, said there are already exemptions in place for personal information not related to government business. 

“Really, what we see here is an attempt to not have to answer the other requests that are not already covered by those exemptions,” she said. 

“I think we know that what is not going to be disclosed now are the things that politicians, and ministers in particular, most want to hide.”

There is a “relationship deficit” between many Indigenous people and the government, which can be a barrier to understanding decisions made by the government, Orkin said. For her clients, FOI requests help provide understanding, she said.

“This can be really important for ensuring that consultation obligations are met and ensuring that the government actually has made its decisions for the reasons that it’s telling you, as opposed to other reasons that it holds behind the scenes.”

Group urges premier to reconsider law change

For Loft, minimizing access to information raises questions about whether or not the government is upholding its responsibility to free, prior and informed consent of First Nations.

It doesn’t help “whatsoever” in alleviating the distrust many Indigenous people feel toward the government, she said, especially as the province is moving at “a relatively fast pace with a number of projects and with a number of decisions that will certainly impact First Nations rights.”

In its statement, the AIAI urged the province to reconsider its proposed FOI change, but if it does move forward, Loft believes the government will face court battles.

“As soon as an Indigenous right is impacted, then yes, it will be challenged,” Loft said.

“Access is the rule and secrecy is the exception. And we’ve had enough secrets.”