Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne has stated that the upcoming legislation, Bill C-27, will affirm Canadians’ “fundamental right to privacy.” He emphasized the need to update privacy laws that have not been modified for 20 years to reflect the rapid evolution of technology. This announcement comes after the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) admitted to tracking the movements of millions of Canadian smartphone users without their consent during pandemic lockdowns. The PHAC claimed that this data collection was necessary to monitor Canadians’ adherence to lockdown rules.
During a hearing at the Commons industry committee, Mr. Champagne urged his colleagues to support the amendment to protect Canadians’ privacy. However, when Ontario New Democrat MP Brian Masse requested to see the written draft of the legal amendments, Mr. Champagne declined. He stated that he was sharing the direction of the legislation and its intentions.
The proposed legislation, titled “An Act To Enact The Consumer Privacy Protection Act,” aims to limit unauthorized commercial use of personal data and proposes regulations for the responsible development and use of AI systems. It also seeks to qualify privacy as a fundamental right. It should be noted that government agencies are currently exempt from privacy laws and that the bill would allow for the sale of anonymized data in bulk. However, Mr. Champagne emphasized that any request for consent to share data must be written in plain language.
Former Ontario privacy commissioner Ann Cavoukian criticized the PHAC’s data collection practices, describing them as “excessive” and lacking transparency. She argued that the government should have provided notice to the public about the data collection efforts. Ms. Cavoukian called for a debate on these issues to ensure transparency in government actions regarding privacy.