Plecas review, part one : Decision time : a review of policy, practice and legislation of child welfare in BC in relation to a judicial decision in the J.P. case

A number of events intervened to prevent me from meeting the timeframes set out in the original Terms of Reference, most significantly, proceedings before the Information and Privacy Commissioner and the Supreme Court of British Columbia, which sought to restrict our access to records associated with the J. P. case. [...] As noted earlier, the circumstances associated with the involvement of MCFD staff, and others, with the J. P. matter will be the subject of a comprehensive file review to be completed in the spring. [...] On the other hand, the reality of a case manager's public exposure and personal humiliation is a stronger penalty – although clearly not anywhere near the order of magnitude of the child who is impacted by the mistake. [...] The absence of clarity of direction generated substantial chaos and, while the Representative made considerable efforts to raise concerns that the initiative was failing, Cabinet and the Premier's office believed the narrative from the Deputy that the program was. [...] The events that followed are well known - the appointment of Judge Thomas Gove as an Inquiry Commissioner, scathing media coverage of the public testimony, a damning Inquiry report, the appointment of a transition commissioner to oversee the implementation of the report, the appointment of a children’s commissioner, and the creation of MCFD.