Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I send apologies on behalf of Shirley-Ann George, our senior vice-president of policy, who is ill today.
Appearing with me today is Barry Sookman, who is with McCarthy Tétrault. Barry is widely known as an expert in Canadian technology law. He is the author of the leading Canadian five-volume treatise on computer and Internet law and is an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall in Toronto.
It is a pleasure to be able to present the views of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and our members on Bill C-27. As many of you know, the Canadian Chamber is the largest business organization in Canada, with membership of 175,000 businesses in all parts of Canada. Our members include both the largest and the smallest of companies. We pride ourselves on being the voice of Canadian business and work hard with politicians and government officials to ensure that Canada's business community is able to maximize its economic and social contribution to our national well-being.
Let me start by saying that the Canadian Chamber strongly supports the goal of eradicating spam. We also participated in the 2005 spam task force, and at our 2007 annual general meeting, the Canadian Chamber and our members from coast to coast to coast passed a policy resolution calling for measures to curb spam. Today, Canadians and Canadian businesses of all sizes and from all regions need effective legislation to limit the scourge of spam. At the same time, Canadian business does not need to be burdened by overly broad legislation that restricts legitimate business activities. To net it out, we need to deal with the bad guys that waste countless and costly hours in every business in Canada and use the Internet to distribute mass mailers that prey on the vulnerable.
Bill C-27 is still a work in progress, and we are here today to call for much-needed modification. This bill, as currently drafted, may render thousands of commonly used computer applications illegal. It would submit Canadian businesses to potential fines of up to $10 million. This new Electronic Commerce Protection Act would also amend the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, PIPEDA, to submit Canadian businesses to civil suits resulting from violations of the act. This bill would also effectively prohibit the formation of new business relationships over the Internet or through e-mail. It would also severely limit the use of the Internet for the distribution of software and software updates.
We appreciate the government's efforts to introduce and pass a bill that will help stop spam. Unfortunately, this bill needs to be fixed. We urge members of this committee to take their time with this 77-page bill, so that government can bring to you the necessary repairs, and so you can pass a bill in the fall that we can all agree on, one that will be effective in stopping spam while not inhibiting legitimate business practices.
I will now turn it over to Barry to discuss the specifics.