Section 8 — Exemptions from Disclosure

Section 8(1) sets out ten grounds on which information can be withheld — including national security and strategic interests (a); information forbidden by a court (b); breach of parliamentary privilege (c); trade secrets and commercial confidence (d); fiduciary information (e); information received in confidence from a foreign government (f); information that would endanger someone's life or safety or reveal a confidential source (g); information that would impede an investigation or prosecution (h); cabinet papers (i); and personal information with no public interest (j).

These exemptions are not absolute. Under Section 8(2), information can still be disclosed if the public interest in disclosure outweighs the harm. Under Section 8(3), most information that is more than 20 years old must be provided. And under Section 10, a record can be partly released with only the exempt portions severed.