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This is an appeal under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (the Act) from a decision of the Ministry of Transportation (the Ministry). The Ministry received a request, on August 19, 1999, for access to all its records which "address any specific interest" held by the Ministry in a particular property in the Region of York.
The Ministry identified 115 documents responsive to the request. In the case of 15 records, the request was transferred to other institutions with custody of the records sought.
The Ministry initially made a decision to deny access to all but three of the records in its custody. This decision was appealed by the person who requested the documents. In the mediation stage of the appeal, the appellant reduced the number of records sought and the Ministry reduced the number of records which were being withheld. Only 52 records remain at issue in this appeal.
The Ministry is relying on the privacy exemption in section 21 of the Act as the basis for its refusal to allow disclosure of the records still at issue. The appellant has challenged the applicability of section 21 and has raised, as an additional issue, the possible application of the "public interest override" in section 23 of the Act.
It is not disputed that the Ministry has purchased the property at issue. The Ministry made the purchase pursuant to a policy which allows the Ministry, in certain circumstances, to acquire land for possible future use in a highway expansion. The Ministry has taken the position that disclosure of the documents at issue must be refused, pursuant to section 21(3)(f) of the Act, because the records contain personal information relating to the financial affairs of the vendors of the property.
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