Thank you. My name is Chantal Bernier. I am the Assistant Privacy Commissioner.
Today, our presentation will be given by Ms. Campbell, our Acting General Counsel. Fortunately for us, she is an expert in the field of biometrics and the author of many articles on the subject. So, she is going to give you the details of our position.
As for me, I would like to remind this Committee of the principles on which this discussion should be based.
Before I pass the microphone to my colleague, I would like to make some broad points that underpin the position of the OPC.
The first point that I think we need to keep at the forefront is that, in principle, a DNA data bank entails a deep invasion of privacy. It does not mean that it should be prohibited. It means that it should be managed with utmost respect for fair balance between security and privacy. This balance is dictated in Canadian law by a few principles that I would like to remind us all of.
First, it is recognized in Canadian law that security may trump privacy. However, it must be done according to some strict conditions. The first one is that the invasion of privacy must be proportionate to the security need it serves. The second one is that the necessity of such invasion must be proven, established, and verifiable in the context of a free and democratic society.
It must also be kept in mind that the information gathered through such invasion of privacy must be used, collected, and retained in a manner that constantly protects its strict proportionality to the objective that the invasion of privacy served in the first place.
Based on the criteria that I have just mentioned, the position of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada is that the legislation, as it is presently, is justified and that the management by the RCMP meets the criteria of a balance between security and privacy. In other words, we are for the status quo.
I shall ask my colleague to describe our position in detail.