Slashgeo reports: “As a followup on previous announcement of the end of paper maps for Canadians, we learn today that ‘[…] the decision to close the Canada Map Office as of next year has been reversed by the NRCan Minister.’” No source or link. Will look into this.

Update #1, 9:55 AM: There may be something to this. Gordon Baker received a reply to his letter about the topo maps decision from his MP’s parliamentary assistant:

I have been in touch with the office of the Minister of Natural Resources regarding your map issue. I am advised that the previous Liberal Government decided in 2001 to close down the Canada Map Office and that the Office has been working toward that Liberal goal ever since, with a final date of March 31, 2007.

Your new Conservative Government is looking seriously at this closure and all though it is still awaiting information on which to base a final decision, the Ministry does not think a March 31, 2007 closure is very likely at all. A more firm answer should be available to me in a few weeks but in the meantime, I would not be too concerned about the closure occurring any time soon.

That was posted October 3. Also quite a bit of media coverage lately: CBC North; CBC Radio Newfoundland and Labrador (see October 4, hour 1).

Much of the above via Maps for Canadians.

Update #2, 10:50 AM: CBC News reports:

Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn announced Wednesday that the Conservative government has yanked that plan off its course, and the map office will remain open.

Kathleen Olson, a spokeswoman for Lunn, said Natural Resources Canada received a flood of letters protesting the planned closure.

“We did start seeing a lot of commotion around the idea of this office closing,” Olson said.

“The minister wanted to found out more about it and once he did, he quickly realized that this is not something he wanted to see happen.”

Looks like the letter-writing campaign got his attention.

Update #3, 11:00 AM: From GISuser.com:

This comes from the GIS Coordinator, Maps, Data and Government Information Centre, Carleton University Library … “On the morning of October 11, 2006 the Map Uses Advisory Committee was contacted by Kathleen Olson, Acting Director of Communications to the Minister of Natural Resources. Ms. Olson wanted to make key stakeholders groups aware of Minister Lunn’s recent decision to keep the Canada Map Office open. According to Ms. Olson, ‘as soon as this was brought to Minister Lunn’s attention he recognized the need to continue this service to stakeholders and Canadians.’”

See previous entries: A Letter to Gary Lunn; Maps for Canadians: Lobbying for Paper Topo Maps; Canadian Topo Map Update: CCA Conference Items; Paper Maps: Doomed in Canada, But Not Elsewhere?; Canadian Topo Map Update: CBC Coverage; Canadian Topo Map Update: Globe and Mail Coverage; Canadian Government Abandoning Paper Topo Maps?