Health researcher firings: FOI requests find nothing, says NDP
Adrian Dix says premier's office believes itself 'above the law'
NDP MLA Adrian Dix says that repeated freedom of information requests about who made key decisions in the firings of health researchers failed to turn up a single record.
Requests by the opposition and the media for emails, memos, briefing notes or correspondence of any kind about the scandal during the period of spanning mid-2012 to late 2014 turned up nothing, he said.
"There were no records, in spite of the fact that this has been a central public issue for a couple of years, damaged the health care system and involved the most senior ranks of government," he told On The Coast host Stephen Quinn.
The scandal began in September 2012, when B.C.'s then-minister of health, Margaret MacDiarmid, announced that her ministry had fired seven of its researchers, and a co-op student.
Months later, that co-op student, Roderick MacIsaac was dead by suicide, and the lawsuits, court cases, and settlements had begun to pile up.
- B.C. health firings referred to ombudsman despite objections
- Fired B.C. health researchers pen letter demanding inquiry
- B.C. health researcher firing scandal timeline
- Health ministry firing investigation stonewalled by B.C. government, documents show
Dix says all of those developments should have produced some sort of documents among senior decision-makers, and confirms what Victoria lawyer Marcia McNeil's initial review of the firings found.
In her report, McNeil noted that a "dearth of documents has granted the decision-makers … an opportunity to avoid taking ownership of the decision."
"What we have is a case where relatively junior officials in government were targeted and wrongfully dismissed, and the most senior people in government … get to avoid all levels of responsibility," Dix said.
Government already in hot water
The NDP's allegations come just a week after Privacy Commissioner Elizabeth Denham wrote a scathing report that said the province routinely contravened freedom of information laws in its handling of records, and requests for information.
The premier has promised to implement Denham's latest recommendations and has asked former commissioner David Loukidelis to ensure it happens.
Dix says what's needed is accountability.
"Five months ago, the premier said that if they were found to be in violation of the law, they would be accountable. They were found to be in violation of the law and they haven't been accountable," he said.
"An apology is due, action is due. The premier promised this wasn't happening, but it was happening."
The health firings are now being reviewed by Ombudsperson Jay Chalke.
To hear the full interview, click on the audio labelled: NDP: FOI requests about health researcher firings coming up empty