The internet has become an essential tool in knowledge storage and the free flow of information between citizens. It is playing a critical role in democratizing communications and society as a whole. There are corporations that want to control the content of information on the internet and alter the free flow of information by giving preferential treatment to those who pay extra for faster service.
The Green Party of Canada is committed to the original design principle of the internet – network neutrality: the idea that a maximally useful public information network treats all content, sites, and platforms equally, thus allowing the network to carry every form of information and support every kind of application.
Green Party MPs will:
- Pass legislation granting the internet in Canada the status of Common Carrier – prohibiting Internet Service Providers (ISPs) from discriminating due to content while freeing them from liability for content transmitted through their systems;
- Support Canada’s Advanced Research and Innovation Network (CANARIE);
- Increase infrastructure spending to accommodate increased bandwidth use and to improve access to rural and remote Canadians (see Section 1.14 Infrastructure and Communities);
- Review the economic model of how ISPs bill their customers;
- Improve support for small ISPs to improve competition and diversity choice for consumers;
- Ensure network neutrality by supporting the principles of fair use, consumer information privacy, communications market competition, and rationalization of the statutory damages provision.