A Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) report outlines the dangers of internet-regulating Bill C-11 in Canada and the lack of government accountability that would come along with it, according to a CTF press release Monday.
The new June report from the CTF, titled Bill C-11 a Fatally Flawed Gateway to Government Censorship, comes from the CTF Ontario Director Jay Goldberg with advice and input from Dr. Michael Geist of the University of Ottawa.
“Bill C-11 undermines Canadians' right to express themselves and watch what they want online and that makes it harder to hold the government to account,” said CTF Ontario Director Jay Goldberg in a press release.
“The government is trying to ram through this dangerous legislation without proper debate or real consideration of the major accountability concerns associated with this bill.”
Bill C-11 would give controlling power over to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to regulate information that is appropriate for Canadian audiences.
Contrary to government claims, the bill hands the CRTC power to regulate user-generated content online, ranging from TikTok videos to YouTube posts, according to the CTF.
“The government has consistently claimed that user-generated content will not be regulated under Bill C-11, but the text of the bill and the chair of the CRTC both say otherwise,” said Goldberg.
“Bill C-11 will hand unelected bureaucrats the power to influence what we say and see online, including on social media.”
Goldberg explains in the report how Bill C-11 does not include specific boundaries for the power it bestows, meaning limits on the powers are not outlined.
"No other democratic nation regulates user-generated content through broadcasting rules in this manner," said the report.
"Canada would be unique among allies in doing so, and not in a good way. Twitter, for example, has likened parts of the government’s regulatory agenda with approaches taken in authoritarian nations like China and North Korea."
The report says the government's rules could lead to Canadian content being deprioritized or even blocked abroad, meaning digital creators would lose out on the global scene.
“The Trudeau government says the CRTC will only have the power to filter and prioritize what we see online based on whether the content qualifies as Canadian, but that opens a Pandora’s box,” said Goldberg.
“These powers could easily be repurposed in the future for other means, including quieting the government’s critics.”