Madam Speaker, obviously, I fully support my colleague for Mercier. However, the Bloc Quebecois cannot support the provisions of Bill C-54 aiming to change access to some information because the government intends to increase the number of departments, organizations or even individuals that will have access to personal information used in the administration of the acts that will be amended by this bill.
Under the previous act, that is to say the one that is currently in force, the following organizations have access to this information: the Department of National Revenue, the Department of Finance, the Department of Supply and Services, the Canada Employment and Immigration Commission, Statistics Canada, and the provincial authority. Those organizations can have access to that information as long as it deals with the entitlement of beneficiaries or the amount of benefit, or if their disclosure is essential to the legislation's application.
One has to be very careful, when trying to obtain personal information on senior citizens since it could be used for other purposes. We have to protect our seniors against potential abuse. The government did not prove that disclosing that privileged information was necessary and essential. The government always has to prove to senior citizens that the information collected will not be used abusively.
Governments interfere more and more in the privacy of people, as we saw recently in the Bristow case. It should be pointed out that the information provisions of Bill C-54 add the following organizations to those departments which can have access to such information: the Canada Post Corporation, a decision which we oppose; the Correctional Service of Canada; the Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police; the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada; members of Parliament who intervene on behalf of applicants or beneficiaries; any other person designated by the minister as a health care professional; and the Department of Veterans Affairs, as regards the administration of the above-mentioned acts or any other federal act administered by that department.
Consequently, some information will be accessible to a larger number of departments, including Canada Post. The government claims that it is a good thing to include that corporation, on the grounds that, through the use of new techniques, it could help accelerate the processing of cheques to pensioners. It is obvious that the government is experiencing enormous difficulties solving its administrative problems. However, it has not demonstrated the need to transmit information to Canada Post.
Such demonstration is essential if the Bloc Quebecois is to support that section of the bill. We particularly object to the inclusion of that corporation, because it is increasingly more present in the lives of Canadians. It has increasingly more information on each of us. Although the collection of that information is often necessary, the government must always justify beyond any doubt such new intrusions in the private lives of citizens.
The government feels that the changes to the disclosure provisions do not represent a major departure from the current rules. The Bloc Quebecois does not agree with that statement; indeed, the communication of confidential information to the Canada Post Corporation is a major change. Even though these changes must comply with the Privacy Act, we feel that it is not acceptable to include Canada Post.