QUESTION PERIOD — Health
COVID-19 Pandemic--Disinformation
November 4, 2020
My question is to the Government Representative in the Senate. Senator Gold, we are increasingly witnessing the spread of conspiracy theories related to COVID-19. A recent study conducted by Carleton University found that almost half of Canadians believe one or more of these conspiracy theories. These beliefs underlie destruction of property, such as the burning of cell and communication towers, and threats to life, such as the armed intruder arrested on the grounds of Rideau Hall.
According to Professor Timothy Caulfield, an expert in this area, conspiracy theories are spreading rapidly and represent a threat to the health and safety of Canadians. Sadly, some provincial politicians have promoted one such theory that the Government of Canada is setting up internment camps for people who have COVID-19. To counter this falsehood, the Prime Minister and the federal Minister of Health had to speak out publicly against them.
Senator Gold, remembering how pernicious and damaging conspiracy theories have been historically — for example, the anti-Semitic conspiracy theories that helped bring down the Weimar Republic and unleashed horrors on innocent people — what is the Government of Canada doing to actively combat these dangerous threats? If steps are being taken, does the government know how effective those interventions are?
Senator, thank you for raising this question. The government is certainly concerned about the spread of disinformation generally, and around COVID-19 in particular, and a concerted and global response based on science is essential. Now more than ever I think individuals need access to reliable and truthful news and information. That is why, since May, the government has invested $3.5 million dollars through Heritage Canada’s Digital Citizen Initiative to enable several organizations to help combat false and misleading COVID-19 misinformation, as well as the racism and stigmatization that often accompanies that.
More generally, it is the position of this government that it is not about controlling what Canadians read. We are a free society. It is about providing people with the tools and skills to think critically about the information that they find online. That’s why much is done and must be done in civil society by organizations that are independent of the government. In that regard, the government also encourages Canadians themselves to help fight disinformation and fraud by only relying upon and sharing trustworthy information from trustworthy sources.
