Online harms bill: Don’t link boy’s suicide with government actions, Trudeau says

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says it’s inappropriate to draw a link between government actions and the death of a British Columbia boy who killed himself last month after falling prey to online sextortion.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh referred to the death of the 12-year-old in Prince George, B.C., during question period today as he asked Trudeau when the Liberal government will table long-promised legislation designed to mitigate online harms. 

Trudeau first promised to introduce legislation tackling hate speech, terrorist content and sexual abuse material in the 2019 federal election campaign. 

He made a similar promise in the 2021 contest, specifying that a re-elected Liberal government would table a bill within its first 100 days, but it has yet to do so.