MPs to hear from privacy czar, tech giants, police on contentious digital evidence access bill

Privacy Commissioner Philippe Dufresne responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Canada’s privacy commissioner, key representatives from major tech companies, and various policing and legal representatives will be testifying before MPs on Tuesday about the federal government’s proposal to bring the country’s “lawful access” regime into the digital age.

The contentious legislation – Bill C-22 as it’s titled – seeks to force electronic service providers to update their systems to assist law enforcement and national intelligence agency CSIS in accessing digital evidence as part of investigations.

The federal Liberals have asserted, with the support of police and national security agencies, that the system needs improvements in order to keep up with increasingly sophisticated criminal use of technology.

Critics have expressed reservations about potential cybersecurity, data collection, civil liberty, and global trade implications as the bill has moved through Parliament, for a second time.

As the House Public Safety and National Security Committee nears the end of its study on the bill, MPs are set to hear from a final barrage of witnesses Tuesday afternoon, into the evening. Among them, Privacy Commissioner Philippe Dufresne, and OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique who will be speaking on the behalf of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

Apple Inc. Senior Director of User Privacy and Child Safety Erik Neuenchwander, as well as Google’s Senior Director of Privacy, Safety and Security Katherine Charlet, and Director of Government Affairs and Public Policy Jeanette Patell will also be testifying.

This hearing comes as both the Conservatives and New Democrats have signalled intent to propose amendments to the Liberal bill.

“We need to get the best bill possible,” said Conservative MP and public safety critic, Frank Caputo.

Accusing the government of leveraging their new majority standing to try to “ram” Bill C-22 through committee, Caputo said opposition MPs will be seeking clarity around potential implications for Canadians’ use of encryption services such as Signal, and the retention of metadata.

“The government is using these cute phrases like ‘encryption neutral.’ Canadians want to know that their end-to-end encryption won’t be targeted,” he said. “They need to know what sorts of metadata are going to be kept? Why are they going to be kept? For how long? And what types?”

NDP MP Jenny Kwan has also submitted what she described as “a whole slew of amendments” she’s hoping are considered, although her party has no members on the committee.

“While there’s been some improvements to [the bill] they also brought in a new component on metadata… which is deeply concerning,” Kwan said Tuesday, also voicing hesitation about the implications for allowing governments access to encryption services, and what vulnerabilities that could open for malicious actors.

“I understand that we need to modernize the laws in terms of lawful access in this digital age… however, we also need to make sure that you strike the right balance,” she said.

Kwan said if the changes the NDP want to see aren’t made, the government won’t have found the right balance between empowering law enforcement and respecting civil liberties.

Liberals’ second attempt

Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree tabled this revised version of the “lawful access” legislation in March, telling reporters at the time that he felt the bill balances the needs of law enforcement and privacy rights.

Bill C-22 is the Liberals’ second attempt at passing legislative changes on this issue in this Parliament, after the first version faced major pushback from civil liberty groups, over concerns the initially proposed search powers were overly broad and intrusive.

When he presented the reworked bill – backed by police forces who have been pushing for an improved regime virtually their entire policing careers – the minister said Canada is falling behind its Five Eyes intelligence allies on this front, and called on the other parties to cooperate in helping pass the legislation “expeditiously.”

MPs agreed to pass the bill from second reading to committee stage on April 20, and the House Public Safety and National Security Committee began hearing from witnesses on Bill C-22 in early May.

Over a pair of marathon hearings during their last sitting week parliamentarians heard from numerous witnesses, including senior RCMP and CSIS officials, as well as Meta and the Canadian Centre for Child Protection. The committee is expected to wrap up its study soon and begin the clause-by-clause process in which amendments can be moved, and if supported by the majority, approved.

What does the bill say?

As it is currently drafted Bill C-22 — the “Lawful Access Act, 2026” — seeks to widen the scope of what law enforcement can obtain from electronic service providers and make the process for accessing the requested material easier, so long as a warrant has been granted.

While the bill does not prescribe what kinds of companies would fall under this category, as those specifications would come through regulations, it’s likely that big tech and telecommunication companies would be included.

To assist investigations, the legislation seeks to require internet and phone companies to confirm to law enforcement if they provide service to a particular suspected person or account. From there, if police can demonstrate reasonable suspicion that a crime has, or will be committed, police could seek a production order to obtain subscriber information such as a name, address, and phone number.

Bill C-22 also proposes to allow Canadian police to seek information from foreign electronic service providers such as major social media companies and OpenAI. Though, the legislation does not authorize the search or seizure of content information such as browsing or social media history.

Beyond these key measures, the bill seeks to grant the public safety minister new powers to impose monetary penalties when electronic service providers fail to comply and compel them to develop and maintain specific capabilities that would facilitate the requirements of the new system.

Tuesday’s hearing gets underway at 3:30 p.m. ET and is scheduled to last four hours.

Check back for updates…