OTTAWA, ON: The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms announces the launch of a national petition calling upon all Members of Parliament to defeat Bill C-22 - legislation that will significantly expand government surveillance powers.

Bill C-22, An Act respecting lawful access, introduced in Parliament on March 12, 2026, would grant government and law enforcement new authority to compel electronic service providers, such as Google, X, Meta, Rogers, Telus, and Bell, to hand over Canadians’ personal data to government and law enforcement.

If passed into law, Bill C-22 will empower the federal government to order electronic service providers to:

• develop capacity for extracting and organizing Canadians’ data for government and law enforcement review,
• install devices that allow government and law enforcement to access Canadians’ data, and
• retain Canadians’ data for up to one year.

Bill C-22 will also allow the government to issue orders in secret while also lowering the legal threshold required for lawful access to Canadians’ information.

Many of Bill C-22’s core surveillance measures were originally advanced in Bill C-2, the Strong Borders Act, which has since stalled following significant opposition from civil liberties groups and the public. Bill C-22 continues to pursue “the deputization” of electronic service providers in Ottawa’s ambition to access more of Canadians’ data.

Bill C-22 must also be viewed within a broader trend of expanding federal authority over digital activity. Recent legislative efforts and policy discussions, including proposals related to cybersecurity, border security, digital identity systems, and a central bank digital currency, point toward institutional commitments to construct significant surveillance infrastructure in Canada.

This national petition calls upon all Members of Parliament to defeat Bill C-22 in the House of Commons.

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