New digital hate watchdogs under the Liberal government’s online harms bill would cost $201-million over the next five years, an independent parliamentary report estimates – drawing criticism from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who pledges to scrap the legislation if he becomes Prime Minister.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer’s analysis, published Thursday, calculated the operating costs for three new bodies the federal government wants to set up to ensure social media companies limit harmful content online and to help victims of hate on social media: a Digital Safety Commission, a Digital Safety Ombudsperson and a Digital Safety Office.
But the PBO said its estimates for Bill C-63 did not include funds the commission may generate by imposing fines on online platforms.
“There is a high degree of uncertainty in the revenues that will be generated since it depends on the willingness of outside enterprises to follow the requirements set out by the Commission and the Online Harms Act,” the report says.
The PBO also did not look at other potential costs arising from the bill, which would also allow people to complain about hate speech online to the Canadian Human Rights Commission.
The report cites estimates from the Department of Canadian Heritage that the three new bodies would have up to 330 full-time equivalent employees.
But the Conservatives oppose Bill C-63′s price tag, saying it would be better redirected to other means of protecting Canadians.
In a social-media post on X responding to the PBO’s report, Mr. Poilievre signalled he would scrap the online harms bill if his party forms the next government.
Conservative MP Michelle Rempel-Garner said the online harms bill will spend millions on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s “useless 330 person censorship bureaucracy instead of using that money to hire police, protect Canadians, and lock up criminals.”
Chantalle Aubertin, a spokesperson for Arif Virani, the Justice Minister who is shepherding the bill through Parliament, hit back at the Conservatives, saying, “Online harms have real-world impacts with tragic, even fatal, consequences. Ask the families of the six people killed at the Quebec City Mosque by someone radicalized online.”
She added: “The volume of harmful content online is staggering. Canadians deserve to have a Digital Safety Commission with the resources to do its job effectively.”
She said social-media companies will be required to help cover the costs of the new commission and ombudsperson.
The commission would have the power to develop regulations to improve online safety and could also issue fines to online platforms that contravene the terms of the act or refuse to comply, while the ombudsperson would help users of social media services who have fallen victim to online hate or abuse.
The two bodies will be supported by a third, the Digital Safety Office, managed by a chief executive officer.
Emily Laidlaw, the University of Calgary’s Canada Research Chair in cybersecurity law, said the bodies need to be established swiftly.
“Online threats to safety are only getting worse, and I don’t think most Canadians are aware of how bad it is and how few options they currently have for help. So, the sooner the better in getting this set up,” she said.
Also on Thursday, the federal government enacted its digital services tax on big foreign technology companies, despite warnings of trade retaliation from the United States.
The DST would apply to companies with annual worldwide revenue exceeding around $1.1-billion, such as Meta. It imposes a 3-per-cent levy on the digital services revenue a company makes from Canadian users above $20-million in a calendar year.
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce warned the DST could harm trade relations with the United States, saying the federal government should reverse the decision.
”The imposition of a retroactive discriminatory digital services tax by the federal government will not only make life more expensive for Canadian families, businesses and workers, but it will significantly harm our relationship with the United States,” said Robin Guy, vice-president and deputy leader, government relations.
“The government should reverse its unilateral decision that is out of step with our allies, and instead, work with our trading partners on an international solution that would better serve Canadians.”