Statistic Canada Head resigns.

[asbot]

This is bad news. When the Government starts interfering with a agency this important that basically reports facts and is trying to influence those basic facts we are starting to talk about " Bog Brother" knowing best. I am saddened that the guy resigned, instead of fighting to keep Stas Can an independent from the government body and I wonder if the next guy is going to be malleable by any government may they be liberal or conservative. Once our stats are in the hands of any government without oversight by an independent body you and my personal info is toast

[jimmy4321]

Wish i could quit my work on principle

[hobbyguy]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/statistics-canada-heads-resignation-was-months-in-the-making-documents/article31946415/

The basic problem seems to be dispute over the centralized IT system.

"Interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose told The Canadian Press that the current government should be able to find a solution to the situation. Ambrose was public works minister at the time the previous government announced the creation of Shared Services Canada to centralize IT services across the government.

“These kinds of things are fixable,” Ambrose said.

“It’s up to the government to look into it and address it, if it’s possible to address it.”

So is Rona saying the problem isn't "fixable"? Sure sounds like it, and she should know - she built the centralized IT system, about which many departments have complained.

I would comment that in the private sector, centralized IT systems were generally a disaster. When a company I worked for was bought ought out, we had to hire 50% more administrative people just to deal with the fall out from "centralized IT systems" - and that was with no increase in business. So I can understand this guy's frustration.

"In his resignation letter to the statistics council, Smith said he can’t support federal initiatives to centralize IT services that effectively undermine the independence of Statistics Canada."