Skip to content

Canada’s Digital Charter – a principled foundation for a digital future?

Matthew Jacobs and Daniel Roth (summer student)

 

… we cannot be a Blockbuster government serving a Netflix society.” – The Hon. Minister Navdeep Bains paraphrasing the Hon. Scott Brison (May 2019, at the Empire Club of Canada)

Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada has announced Canada’s new Digital Charter. Announced on May 21, 2019, the Digital Charter consists of 10 principles that are intended to inform the direction and substance of the federal government’s future legislation, regulation and programming. The purpose of the Digital Charter is to build a foundation of trust with the Canadian public to support Canada’s pivot towards becoming a digital- and data-driven economy and society.

The 10 Digital Charter principles

The 10 principles that comprise the Digital Charter are:

  1. Universal access: All Canadians will have equal opportunity to participate in the digital world and the necessary tools to do so, including access, connectivity, literacy and skills.
  2. Safety and security: Canadians will be able to rely on the integrity, authenticity and security of the services they use and should feel safe online.
  3. Control and consent: Canadians will have control over what data they are sharing, who is using their personal data and for what purposes, and know that their privacy is protected.
  4. Transparency, portability and interoperability: Canadians will have clear and manageable access to their personal data and should be free to share or transfer it without undue burden.
  5. Open and modern digital government: Canadians will be able to access modern digital services from the Government of Canada, which are secure and simple to use.
  6. A level playing field: The Government of Canada will ensure fair competition in the online marketplace to facilitate the growth of Canadian businesses and affirm Canada’s leadership on digital and data innovation, while protecting Canadian consumers from market abuses.
  7. Data and digital for good: The Government of Canada will ensure the ethical use of data to create value, promote openness and improve the lives of people—at home and around the world.
  8. Strong democracy: The Government of Canada will defend freedom of expression and protect against online threats and disinformation designed to undermine the integrity of elections and democratic institutions.
  9. Free from hate and violent extremism: Canadians can expect that digital platforms will not foster or disseminate hate, violent extremism or criminal content.
  10. Strong enforcement and real accountability: There will be clear, meaningful penalties for violations of the laws and regulations that support these principles.

The genesis of the Digital Charter

The Digital Charter is based upon the results of ISED’s 2018 National Digital and Data Consultations. Three key areas were identified that Canadians view as critical in supporting the transition towards a digital economy:

  1. attracting and developing talent with the appropriate skills for a digital economy and supporting upskilling and reskilling as the economy transitions,
  2. enhancing the competitiveness of Canadian companies on the global stage, and
  3. ensuring that data is being used in ways that respect Canadians’ rights to manage their data, and providing greater control over, and security around, data creation, collection, use and erasure through world-class regulation.

Canada’s Innovation Plan

  • In a May 2019 letter to Canada’s Commissioner of Competition, Minister Bains highlighted the government’s view that pro-competition, pro-consumer practices would play a key role in fostering the growth of digital SME innovation and the rebuilding of consumer confidence in the digital marketplace.
  • In the 2019 Federal Budget, CA$5-6 billion was earmarked for investment in developing high-speed internet connectivity infrastructure for 100% of Canadians by 2030, especially those in rural, remote and Indigenous communities.
  • The government is investing in Canadian business through the Innovation Superclusters Initiative (for more see our earlier publication, The Ocean Supercluster – Navigating Innovation Together) and through the creation of unified business support services in the form of Innovation Canada, and by supporting the growth of Canada’s artificial intelligence sector.
  • A Statistics Advisory Council will be established to provide advice to government bodies that use or manage data collected from Canadians, and the Standards Council of Canada will work to standardize data governance requirements to create a level playing field between businesses and consumers.
  • The government will also be conducting reviews of the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), the Privacy Act, and Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation, among others, to ensure that the protections afforded to Canadian consumers and businesses are reflective of the current digital environment and align with global best practices, such as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). These legislative changes are intended to promote a culture of “privacy by design” in which companies address privacy as part of their business model, rather than as an add-on.

Digital Charters internationally

Digital Charters are beginning to appear globally. The British Government released a policy paper in April 2019 outlining principles and actions that will form their Digital Charter, focusing on open and equitable access and consumer rights, literacy and protection. The UK Digital Charter includes a Social Media Code of Practice, the introduction of a new statutory duty of care for companies in relation to addressing harmful online content and activity on their websites, and a variety of exploratory projects to enhance the UK digital economy. The European Union released the second draft of a “Charter of Digital Fundamental Rights of the European Union” in April 2018 for further public consultation, which consists of 18 principles intended to provide guidance for European and state legislators as they work to address the challenges of a transitioning digital economy.

What will the Digital Charter do?

Currently it is not clear what effects Canada’s Digital Charter will have. Early questions about the direction and substance of Canada’s Digital Charter focus on whether it will be an effective tool for regulating an economic space that is driven by monopoly players. Where the Digital Charter presents “an ambitious, aspirational principled approach to digital and data transformation in Canada” but was not accompanied by any legislative or regulatory reforms, it is unclear whether the Digital Charter will develop the teeth to serve as the Government’s foundation of trust for a data-driven digital economy in a society where digital life occurs cross-border on a regular basis.

Think: Innovation

As legislation, regulation and programming under the Digital Charter begins to roll out, we may see changes to competition law, privacy law (especially around trans-border data flows), cybersecurity law, and intellectual property law. At Stewart McKelvey, we are closely monitoring Canada’s Digital Charter for impacts this may have on our clients. We take innovation into application.


This update is intended for general information only. If you have questions about the above, please contact Matthew Jacobs.

 

Click here to subscribe to Stewart McKelvey Thought Leadership.

SHARE

Archive

Search Archive


 
 

TTC’s Random Testing Decision: A Bright Light for Employers in the Haze of Marijuana Legalization

April 11, 2017

Rick Dunlop In my December 15, 2016 article, Federal Government’s Cannabis Report: What does it mean for employers?, I noted the Report’s1 suggestion that there was a lack of research to reliably determine when individuals are impaired…

Read More

Unionization in the Construction Industry: Vacation Day + Snapshot Rule = Disenfranchisement

April 4, 2017

Rick Dunlop and Michelle Black On March 14, 2014, CanMar Contracting Limited (“CanMar”) granted a day off to two of its hard working and longer serving employees so they could spend time with their respective families. That…

Read More

Sometimes a bad deal is just a bad deal: unconscionability and insurance claim settlements in Downer v Pitcher, 2017 NLCA 13

March 16, 2017

Joe Thorne and Meaghan McCaw The doctrine of unconscionability is an equitable remedy available in exceptional circumstances where a bargain between parties, be it a settlement or a release, may be set aside on the basis that…

Read More

Privilege Prevails: Privacy Commissioner protects solicitor-client communications

March 16, 2017

Jonathan Coady After more than five years, the Prince Edward Island Information and Privacy Commissioner (the “Privacy Commissioner”) has completed her review into more than sixty records withheld by a local school board on the…

Read More

The Latest in Labour Law: A Stewart McKelvey Newsletter – Nova Scotia Teachers Union & Government – a synopsis

March 7, 2017

Peter McLellan, QC & Richard Jordan Introduction On February 21, 2017 the Nova Scotia Government passed Bill 75 – the Teachers’ Professional Agreement and Classroom Improvement (2017) Act. This Bulletin will provide some background to what is, today,…

Read More

Scotia Mortgage Corporation v Furlong: The Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador weighs in on the former client rule in commercial transactions

March 1, 2017

Bruce Grant, QC and Justin Hewitt In the recent decision of Scotia Mortgage Corporation v Furlong1 the Supreme Court of Newfoundland and Labrador confirmed that where a law firm acts jointly for the borrower and lender in the placement…

Read More

The Ordinary Meaning of Insurance: Client Update on the SCC’s Decision in Sabean

February 21, 2017

The Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Sabean v Portage La Prairie Mutual Insurance Co, 2017 SCC 7 at the end of January, finally answering an insurance policy question that had divided the lower…

Read More

Client Update: Outlook for the 2017 Proxy Season

February 8, 2017

In preparing for the 2017 proxy season, you should be aware of some regulatory changes and institutional investor guidance that may impact disclosure to, and interactions with, your shareholders. This update highlights what is new…

Read More

Client Update: The Future of Planning and Development on Prince Edward Island – Recent Amendments to the Planning Act

January 23, 2017

Perlene Morrison and Hilary Newman During the fall 2016 legislative sitting, the Province of Prince Edward Island passed legislation that results in significant changes to the Planning Act. The amendments received royal assent on December 15, 2016 and…

Read More

Plaintiffs’ medical reports – disclosure obligations in Unifund Assurance Company v. Churchill, 2016 NLCA 73

January 10, 2017

Joe Thorne1 and Justin Hewitt2 In Unifund Assurance Company v Churchill,3  the Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal considered the application of our rules of court and the common law as they relate to disclosure of documents produced in…

Read More

Search Archive


Scroll To Top