When governments lose in court – twice – they should be expected to explain to the public why. But in the District of Central Saanich, transparency has been replaced with evasion and delay.
The district was involved in legal action against a local farming family, the McHatties, over land use, tree removal, and other bylaw-related matters. They lost both cases. That should have been the end of it. But when I asked for a simple breakdown of the taxpayer dollars spent pursuing these failed court cases, the district circled the wagons.
The first time I filed a Freedom of Information request, the response was lawyer-client privilege, no records released. When I tried again, narrowing my request specifically to costs tied to the McHattie farm litigation, they responded with a $1,410 fee estimate. This, despite the fact that the earlier fee yielded no meaningful disclosure.
When I appealed on public interest grounds, arguing that the taxpayers who funded these lawsuits have a right to know the cost, the district didn’t revisit the numbers. Instead, they threatened to cut off future communication under their “Respectful Workplace” policy, suggesting my FOI activity might amount to harassment.
Let’s be clear: a lawful access request about public expenditures is not harassment. It’s called accountability. The district’s response is not about protecting staff – it’s about shielding institutional embarrassment.
This pattern is bigger than one case. It’s about how local governments insulate themselves from scrutiny. In Central Saanich, a legitimate question: How much did taxpayers pay for two failed lawsuits? – has been treated like a threat.
When a municipality can't answer basic questions about how it spends public funds, something has gone very wrong. Local governments are not entitled to secrecy. They are not entitled to silence critics with vague policies and legal bluster.
Central Saanich didn’t just lose in court. It lost sight of who it works for.
Barry McLean
Central Saanich
