44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 1, 2022 10:00AM
Madam Speaker, a group of organizations, including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, OpenMedia and Leadnow, have written an open letter calling for improvements to Bill C-26. One of the items they call out is that secrecy undermines accountability and due process.
The member for Windsor West spoke a bit about this in his speech. Could he share more about the suggested improvements that would ensure better public reporting as part of Bill C-26?
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Madam Speaker, I think our Minister of Public Safety was very clear this morning. Without question, every time the government takes additional, decisive action and puts additional measures in place, there has to be corresponding transparency and accountability. We absolutely need to make sure there is enough of that in Bill C-26 so we have the confidence not only of the House but of Canadians with regard to having the proper accountability and transparency in place.
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for a very thoughtful speech. He was very good at pointing out some of the issues with this that we have heard from stakeholders. We have heard from privacy and civil liberties groups about the secrecy that could impair accountability, due process and public regulation.
The government orders issued under this bill may be made in secret without public reporting requirements, making it impossible for rights groups and the public to monitor and challenge how power is exercised under the bill. The secrecy of this could be very concerning.
I wonder if the member and the Bloc had any thoughts, once this goes to committee, about anything that could be added to improve the required balance between civil liberties and secrecy.
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- Dec/1/22 2:51:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, CSIS advised the Prime Minister in its top secret briefing note that the way to combat foreign interference was through “a policy that is grounded in transparency and sunlight in order to highlight the point that [foreign interference] should be exposed to the public”.
Why are the Prime Minister and the government not heeding this advice? Why are they not going public and telling Canadians exactly which candidates and which riding associations were involved in Beijing's foreign interference?
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- Dec/1/22 2:52:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, intelligence experts here and in the Five Eyes are saying that the best way to combat foreign interference is transparency and sunshine, to go public with information. That is why last summer the U.K. government and MI5 went public about a Beijing agent in the U.K. Parliament, Christine Lee. She was publicly named and so were the MPs who were the target of her donations.
Those MPs took action to protect the integrity of the U.K. Parliament. Why will the government not do the same thing in this country?
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Kingston and the Islands for his speech, which was informative as always.
However, I would like to know how this bill will enhance public trust in the Internet. What mechanism in Bill C‑26 will help guarantee public trust?
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Madam Speaker, unfortunately I do not sit on the public safety committee, so I will not be the person debating it when it eventually gets to committee, but obviously there are opportunities for improvement in any piece of legislation. I look forward to seeing the recommendations that might come from our colleagues in the House when it gets to committee.
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