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Bill C-18 (44-1)
An Act respecting online communications platforms that make news content available to persons in Canada
Sponsor: Hon. Pablo Rodriguez | Type: House Government Bill | Introduced: 2022-04-05 | Royal Assent: 2023-06-22
speech-regulation
Critical Analysis — What This Bill Actually Does
The "Online News Act" forces digital platforms to compensate news outlets for linking to their content. When Meta refused to comply, it blocked all Canadian news on Facebook and Instagram — cutting off millions of Canadians from news access entirely. The Act created a government-mediated bargaining framework that gives officials leverage over which platforms can distribute news in Canada, while failing to address the underlying business model challenges facing journalism.
Impact Vector (8-Axis Score)
Scoring Model Comparison
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Parliamentary Vote
211 Yea — 115 Nay (339 MPs recorded)
| Party | Yea | Nay | Paired | Total |
|---|
| Liberal | 152 | 2 | 7 | 161 |
| Conservative | 1 | 112 | 3 | 116 |
| NDP | 22 | 0 | 2 | 24 |
| Bloc | 31 | 0 | 1 | 32 |
| Green | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Independent | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 |