Adopt national disinformation framework
Petitioners ask Parliament to adopt a Charter‑compliant national framework to counter disinformation, hold officials accountable for knowingly spreading misinformation, require transparent political communications, support digital literacy, and coordinate federal, provincial, territorial and Indigenous efforts. The government responds that truth‑setting is for voters and Parliament, and cites existing transparency, literacy programs and Bill C‑25.
Why we would sign this petition
- Creates a coordinated national mechanism setting accountability standards for officials who knowingly spread false information, which could deter deliberate misinformation and restore public trust in official communications.
- Requiring transparency in political communications and funding digital literacy would help citizens better identify misinformation and make more informed decisions.
- Coordinating federal, provincial, territorial and Indigenous efforts would produce consistent, Charter‑compliant responses across jurisdictions rather than fragmented approaches.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- May risk infringing freedom of expression or parliamentary privilege if the state is empowered to judge truth or sanction speech by elected officials.
- Implementing and enforcing a national framework across jurisdictions and Indigenous governments is complex, potentially duplicative and administratively burdensome.
- Determining 'knowingly' spread misinformation is legally and factually difficult, creating risks of politicized enforcement or chilling legitimate political debate.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
Petition to the House of Commons in Parliament assembled Disinformation and manipulation by public officials and political figures at all orders of government erode trust and degrade informed debate. Canadian security agencies, including CSIS and the Communications Security Establishment, identify disinformation as a national-level threat to democracy, unity, and public safety. There is no coherent, Canada-wide mechanism to detect, assess, and publicly address such incidents when they occur; Coordinated foreign and domestic campaigns exploit polarization and platform dynamics and are often amplified by political actors; Existing ethical and legal frameworks provide inconsistent or unclear accountability when officials knowingly disseminate false or misleading information; Comparable democracies—e.g., Wales, France, and Lithuania—are developing tools that sanction deliberate political misinformation while preserving free expression; and Canada can strengthen democracy through safeguards that combine transparency, public education, and accountability within the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada concerned by the growing spread of disinformation and manipulation by public officials and political figures, call upon the House of Commons in Parliament assembled to:1. Strengthen transparency, accountability, and truth in public communications while ensuring that all measures respect the freedoms guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms; 2. Adopt a national framework to counter political disinformation. The framework should set accountability standards for officials who knowingly spread false or misleading information; 3. Require transparency in political communications; 4. Support digital-literacy programs; and 5. Coordinate federal, provincial, territorial, and Indigenous efforts for a Charter-compliant response that protects democracy and freedom of expression. 1. Strengthen transparency, accountability, and truth in public communications while ensuring that all measures respect the freedoms guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms; 2. Adopt a national framework to counter political disinformation. The framework should set accountability standards for officials who knowingly spread false or misleading information; 3. Require transparency in political communications; 4. Support digital-literacy programs; and 5. Coordinate federal, provincial, territorial, and Indigenous efforts for a Charter-compliant response that protects democracy and freedom of expression.
Government response
Response by the Minister of Transport and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons Signed by Kevin Lamoureux The Government of Canada is pleased to respond to this petition. In Canada, the public is able to freely and openly debate, scrutinize, and challenge all public communications, including those undertaken by elected representatives. Canada’s democracy depends on the public freely accessing and consuming information from diverse sources from which they can independently form opinions. In a democracy, it is not appropriate for the government to determine truthfulness of claims, including those made by elected representatives. In Canada’s participatory democracy, this role is reserved for citizens who hold their elected representatives accountable through general elections every four years or less. Elected representatives in Parliament in turn are responsible for holding the Government to account. The executive is responsible to Parliament and remains in power as long as it commands the confidence of the elected House of Commons. Together they are ultimately accountable to electors. This accountability to electors is also represented by the privileges and immunities that Parliamentarians are accorded while representing their constituents in the House of Commons and at Parliamentary committees. Parliamentary privilege includes freedom of speech, which allows Parliamentarians to freely voice concerns and opinions without fear of criminal or civil prosecution. This privilege is fundamental to the work that Parliamentarians do in legislating and holding the Government to account on behalf of the electors. However, along with this individual privilege, the House of Commons as a collective also has the right to discipline Members who abuse or breach privileges, such as freedom of speech, and to potentially find Members in contempt of Parliament. Parliament’s ability to determine the way in which Parliamentarians must conduct themselves in the performance of their duties, as well as any potential consequences of abuse or breach, is fundamental to Parliament’s continued independence. Political communications in Canada are subject to transparency requirements during election periods as defined in the Canada Elections Act. These added requirements have been put in place by Parliament in recognition that during heightened periods of political competition and debate, there ought to be added safeguards in place to enable Canadians to make informed choices. Outside of such periods, elected representatives and political parties, which are independent organizations, communicate with their constituents, membership, and the public in a manner that in their view best reaches their intended audiences. The Government of Canada recognizes the importance of digital literacy programming and has made investments into equipping the public with digital literacy skills. In 2019, the Government of Canada established Digital Citizen Initiative which supports a community of Canadian researchers that promote a healthy information ecosystem, to help Canadians and the Government understand online disinformation and its impact on Canadian society, and in turn build an evidence-base to identify potential action and develop future policy-making. Through the Digital Citizen Initiative, more than 180 research projects and citizen-focused initiatives have been undertaken. The Government of Canada also recognizes that public servants must be equipped with the necessary skills to navigate an increasingly complex information environment. In 2024, the Government of Canada made available its Protecting Democracy Toolkits to Resist Disinformation and Foreign Interference intended for members of the public, community leaders, and elected officials. It also published a Countering Disinformation: A Guidebook for Public Servants to build public service know-how in countering disinformation. These resources were shared with various stakeholders, including provincial and territorial governments, and Indigenous organizations. To raise public threat awareness, Canada’s national security agencies undertake regular reporting, including through the Cyber Threats to Canada’s Democratic Process report-series, and make accessible resources for best practices online. The Government of Canada has also supplemented these resources with added reporting and transparency into specific threats targeting Canada’s information environment, including by making public attributions of specific threat actors targeting Canada’s information environment. Measures in place must be regularly revisited to ensure they continue to meet the challenges of a rapidly evolving information environment. In March 2026, the Government of Canada actioned several recommendations from the Public Inquiry into Foreign Interference in Federal Electoral Processes and Democratic Institutions by introducing Bill C-25 which proposes amendments to the Canada Elections Act including with respect to combatting election deepfakes and countering election disinformation; by unveiling a new Cabinet Directive on the Coordinated Response to Threats to Elections to coordinate the Government of Canada’s threat response and facilitate added information sharing regarding threats during the election period; and by investing an additional $31.5 million into the Rapid Response Mechanism at Global Affairs Canada and strengthening its mandate. This investment will enable the Rapid Response Mechanism to undertake open-source analysis of foreign threats present in the Canadian information environment at all times, not just during key democratic events. It will also enable the Rapid Response Mechanism to meet additional public reporting requirements for enhanced transparency and information sharing with Canadians. The Government of Canada appreciates the time and effort taken to submit this thoughtful petition. It is an excellent example of citizen participation in Canada’s democracy, and Canada’s democracy is better for it.