Ottawa, Ontario
[2008-6-2]
Ottawa, June 2, 2008- The Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada today launched its Intake and Early Resolution Unit (IERU).
The IERU is a pilot project that is being introduced as part of the Offiice's efforts to strengthen and streamline its complaints-handling process in order to eliminate its historical backlog of cases and improve service to Canadians and federal institutions.
All complaints made under the Access to Information Act will be assessed and processed by the IERU. Using a triage system, complaints will be prioritized according to a set of objective criteria. Early resolution will be attempted where possible. The goal of this new and more flexible approach is to enable the Office to resolve complaints more efficiently and at the earliest opportunity. Overall, it is our priority to improve service delivery to Canadians.
This pilot project is the result of consultations with our staff, the access community, provincial counterparts that are addressing similar problems and a consulting firm with expertise in performance management and program evaluation. The consulting firm's report is on our website at: http://www.infocom.gc.ca/publications/2008/pdf/final_report_Jan_29_08-e.pdf. (246 KB)
We will seek feedback from complainants and institutions during the course of the year. The success of the project will then be assessed and we will decide whether it will be rolled out permanently.
The IERU pilot project can be found at : http://www.infocom.gc.ca/publications/Intake_early_resolution_pilot_project-e.asp
For general inquiries please contact 613-995-2410.
For media inquiries please contact:
Nadine Welter
Senior Communications Officer
Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
Tel: 613 996-6955
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