New online harms bill coming soon with other departmental buy-in, Fraser states

The federal government is once again promising to shepherd an online harms bill through Parliament. This time it will be a multi-pronged approach, with three ministers contributing to the proposed law, according to the Minister of Justice. Sean Fraser (Central Nova, N.S.) appeared before the Senate during its Question Period on Wednesday, Nov. 19. Progressive senators group member Kristopher Wells asked if the government was still committed to online harms legislation. “I know you’re referring to the previous Bill C-63,” Fraser noted. “Canadians should expect to see the government take action to address some of the same harms that were the subject of that bill. You should not expect to see an identical bill copied and pasted in its previous form.” Previously, the bill had been championed by former Justice minister Arif Virani. This time around, there will be input from Canadian Identity and Culture Minister Steven Guilbeault (Laurier—St-Marie, Que.) and Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon (Toronto Centre, Ont.), Fraser added. “In addition to the criminal justice reforms we are planning to implement, there is a consultation process now under way, engaging my colleagues — the ministers responsible for cultural identity and artificial intelligence — who are, I understand, looking at additional reforms in this space,” he explained. During earlier questioning from progressive senator Julie Miville-Dechêne, the minister said the new bill will be introduced in a few weeks. He was no more specific than that. He previously confirmed the new act would be split into several pieces of legislation across ministries, according to reporting from Politico. The original version of the online harms bill, C-63, faced criticism from OpenMedia and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, among others, who sought to have it split into two. They worried about internet service providers acting rashly at bringing down content and threatening freedom of speech, as well as whether or not proposed changes to the Human Rights Act and Criminal Code could threaten free speech. On Thursday Telus Corp. was involved with a group that demanded action on protecting children online through an online harms bill. While not appearing at a related event on Parliament Hill, the company has lent its name to support the reintroduction of such legislation. Public and private sector organizations united to call for protection of youth and the introduction of the new bill before the New Year. "Today should be a day of celebration; instead we’re here to sound the alarm," Andrea Chrysanthou, chair of the board for Children First Canada, one of the groups in the coalition, said at a news conference. ppark@thewirereport.ca

New online harms bill coming soon with other departmental buy-in, Fraser states

Regulatory |
By Paul Park
|November 20, 2025

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New online harms bill coming soon with other departmental buy-in, Fraser states

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