Evidence of meeting #71 for Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was privacy.
A video is available from Parliament.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative John Brassard
Okay. We need the proper headset for interpretation. Is there anybody else on the Liberal side who wants to...?
I can't stop the meeting at this point.
Are you rising on a point of order, Mr. Villemure?
9:35 a.m.
Bloc
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative John Brassard
Yes.
Mr. Fergus or Ms. Saks, are you prepared to carry on with Ms. Hepfner's line of questioning?
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative John Brassard
Ms. Hepfner, we're going to continue with Mr. Fergus, if that's possible. Maybe the technicians can figure out what's going on with your headset. They'll give you a call.
Mr. Fergus, you have four minutes. Go ahead, please.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
Greg Fergus Liberal Hull—Aylmer, QC
I am going to try my best to do justice to Ms. Hepfner's questions, if you'll just give me a second here, sir.
Moving on to the Privacy Commissioner, I am hoping that the question from Ms. Hepfner would have been along the lines of the TikTok study.
Again, because of the coordination and the importance you have accorded to working with the provinces to come up with a collaborative study and because this is very much an internationally recognized concern, I presume it would be helpful for Parliament to pronounce itself on these issues and make sure that we can move forward on having a view on TikTok.
9:35 a.m.
Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
I would say it certainly would be.
We are conducting our joint investigations on the basis of the legislation in our jurisdiction and are working with colleagues internationally.
This committee has done studies on privacy issues that have been hugely impactful and it has made recommendations on issues. I've commented publicly on a number of them, including privacy impact assessments at the front end and recognizing privacy as a fundamental right.
To the extent that the committee would study the issue in this respect—obviously, we will conduct our investigation separately—any guidance or any principles that you would recommend or put forward and any coordination you would bring forward in terms of expertise on the themes that ought to be considered in the principles and potential changes are always things we look at very carefully.
May 12th, 2023 / 9:35 a.m.
Liberal
Ya'ara Saks Liberal York Centre, ON
Thank you to my colleague, Mr. Fergus.
Thank you, Chair.
To continue on with TikTok and maybe with people in the room, I have two teenage daughters who use TikTok. As a parent, I tend to go in once in a while to see what's there and what they're looking at, and I'll be frank: There are times when it's alarming. I've seen hate material on there. I've seen content that could lead to body dysmorphia. The list goes on and on.
Governments across Canada have had this big cry to ban it for government use and to not use it on our phones and devices. The U.S. is also considering banning it universally.
What danger do you believe it poses to Canadians, especially young Canadians like my own two daughters?
9:35 a.m.
Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
I think we're very focused on protecting children and how we use their personal information. Children are exposed more and more, obviously, to the digital world in everything they do, whether it's in school or socializing with their friends. We need to look at it. Our laws need to be updated to reflect this reality.
One of my recommendations on Bill C-27 in the report has to do with the protection of children and ensuring we're treating children's personal information in the best interest of the child, looking at what they are exposed to and the information they share and making sure they're aware and have a good understanding of what's going on and the long-term implications of it.
In many respects, sometimes they're exposed to things and face implications that they're not equipped to understand. We're treating them like adults, to some extent. We have to make sure they have the appropriate protection in terms of their information and their participation in the digital world.
9:40 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative John Brassard
Thank you, Mr. Dufresne. Thank you, Ms. Saks.
Mr. Villemure, you have two and a half minutes.
9:40 a.m.
Bloc
René Villemure Bloc Trois-Rivières, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair. It's always tough to ask questions in just two and a half minutes.
Ms. Maynard, I would like to know what you think about the review of the act. We talked a little bit about it in the past.
9:40 a.m.
Information Commissioner, Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
From what we've heard from Treasury Board, I don't think there is going to be any follow up to the government's study or consultations in the coming months or years. From what I understand, no recommendations were made in that regard. There has been no indication that changes will be made to the act, despite the recommendations from my office and from many stakeholders involved in the process.
The next step is the tabling of your report. I think that the committee's report will be essential in determining whether changes need to be made to the act. I am counting on you to table a report with recommendations regarding the act. We are often told that changes need to be made to the system, and I agree. The act needs to be amended so that we can advance the access to information process and make positive changes.
In July, we will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Access to Information Act. In all those years, no major changes have been made to any of the exemptions or exclusions.
9:40 a.m.
Bloc
René Villemure Bloc Trois-Rivières, QC
The act is reviewed approximately every five years, is it not?
9:40 a.m.
Information Commissioner, Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
Well, there is a five-year mandated review. The next review is already coming up in two years.
9:40 a.m.
Bloc
René Villemure Bloc Trois-Rivières, QC
That's right. Thank you very much, Ms. Maynard.
Mr. Dufresne, is there sufficient privacy literacy, especially among young people? Do we need to do more? It seems to me that electronic media are taking more space. What should we do about that?
9:40 a.m.
Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
I think that we should do more, whether in schools or universities. We should find tools to help young people. My office certainly has a role to play in that regard, as do my provincial counterparts.
As I was saying earlier, children are more and more exposed to that world. In many ways they are very comfortable and adept, but I think that they need to be better equipped to handle it. I think that they need to better understand the implications of this environment because there are many.
9:40 a.m.
Privacy Commissioner of Canada, Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
We have resources to promote the right to privacy, but this is a different kind of outreach that we would like to do more of. However, we do not have the resources to do as much as I would like.
9:40 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative John Brassard
Thank you, Mr. Villemure.
We are now at our final intervention for this panel.
Mr. Green, you have two and a half minutes. Go ahead, please.
9:40 a.m.
NDP
Matthew Green NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
Ms. Maynard, your office is funded to conclude 4,414 complaint investigations annually, but the OIC is on track to receive more than 7,000 complaints this year.
How many additional staff members would the OIC need to keep up with the number of complaints received annually?
9:40 a.m.
Information Commissioner, Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
I can tell you that we have done so well in being more effective because we have no more resources. We became more efficient in doing our investigations. We closed 8,000 this year. I think we can keep a pace of about 7,000 complaints a year. That means we can keep up with what we're receiving if there are no increases.
What we can't do is diminish the number of cases in our inventory, which has stayed at about 3,500 since the beginning of my mandate. We would need another 15 to 20 investigators on a temporary basis to do that for the next three to four years.
9:40 a.m.
NDP
Matthew Green NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
The percentage of administrative complaints assigned to investigators within 30 days of being registered was 27.7% in 2021-22. Is this a reflection of the constraints your office is facing?
9:40 a.m.
Information Commissioner, Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
Yes, the amount of time the files are waiting in the inventory to be assigned is ridiculous. It's something that we're working on. Without more resources, our investigators have big portfolios, and they just can't take more.
