Premier Ford’s mandate letters to cabinet ministers can be kept secret: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled Premier Doug Ford’s mandate letters to cabinet ministers can be kept private.

The decision released Friday reverses the lower court rulings.

The case stems from the Ontario government’s decision to deny the CBC’s request under the province’s freedom-of-information law for ministerial mandate letters written after the 2018 election.

The Information and Privacy Commissioner disagreed, ordering the government to disclose them, and two levels of Ontario courts have also sided with the CBC.

Ford’s government contends that cabinet confidentiality is fundamental to a system where ministers collectively decide government policy, but the CBC has argued disclosure is key to an informed public and accountable government.

More to come