Canadians take pride in calling a nation home where justice prevails, freedoms are upheld and our most vulnerable, especially our children, are protected.
Nine years of soft-on-crime Liberal-NDP government policy has unleashed crime, chaos and drugs into our communities, leaving families across the country concerned for the safety of their loved ones, both on the streets and online.
Online criminal activity continues to surge, but the Liberals’ response has been to push forward censorship bills forcing Canadians into a false choice between their safety and free expression.
Bill C-63 introduces a dangerous new provision for an offence “motivated by hatred,” which could impose a life sentence for even minor infractions under any act of Parliament. This broad, unchecked provision would further erode trust between the public and our institutions.
Bill C-63 fails our children by delaying protections and relying on an unclear regulatory process. Instead of providing immediate protections, it pushes key decisions into an opaque regulatory abyss, prioritizing the interests of big tech over the safety and well-being of Canadian families.
First, the bill will establish an Online Safety Commission, which will be another government bureaucracy made up of “thought police” which will be the judge and jury on whether what you say online is appropriate or not.
I use the term “thought police” purposefully, as one of the aspects of Bill C-63 is house arrest if one is convicted of potentially, maybe, someday, possibly saying or writing something hateful. It seems like a scene out of the sci-fi film Minority Report, but this is the reality the Liberal-NDP government wants in Canada.
This bill also seeks to reinstate Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act, a provision removed by the Harper Conservative government and one even the Toronto Star, hardly a cheerleader for Conservatives, deemed an unnecessary and burdensome clause for protecting Canadians from hate speech.
Section 13, which was previously repealed for its overly broad and subjective application, allowed the government to censor speech without the need for criminal proceedings. It weaponized the Human Rights Commission as complaints could be made anonymously and the commission was overwhelmed with baseless and costly complaints, which needlessly devastated the lives of many Canadians. Reintroducing this section would open the door to an extrajudicial system where vague definitions of hate speech could lead to a chilling effect on free speech.
By failing to effectively tackle online harassment and leaving significant gaps in protections, Bill C-63 reflects a Liberal-NDP government more concerned about stifling free speech and façade of caring about children than genuinely, actively safeguarding Canadians' rights and safety.
It is no surprise the justice minister said he is proud of the only piece of legislation he has managed to introduce since his appointment. Yet millions of taxpayer dollars would be wasted long before any meaningful protection or enforcement is put in place.
While the Liberals focus on banning opinions challenging the prime minister's ideology, Conservatives are dedicated to keeping Canadians safe, both online and in our communities while still upholding and defending civil liberties, a concept completely unknown to this government.
Canadians deserve better than half-hearted reforms. They need a government committed to real accountability and actionable solutions to protect our children and maintain our freedom of speech.
It is time for this Liberal-NDP government to stop hiding behind buzzwords and start delivering results to protect Canadians, or better yet, time to get out of the way and let common-sense Conservatives take charge.