New Data Commissioner Proposed In The 2021 Federal Budget

On April 19, 2021, the Government of Canada released the 2021 Federal Budget, which, among other things, proposes to allocate $17.6 million over the next five years (and $3.5 million per year afterwards) to the establishment of a new federal Data Commissioner.

Based on the budget, the role of the Data Commissioner will be to: (i) "... promote positive uses and outcomes associated with data, while identifying and mitigating harmful and negative consequences"; and (ii) "... inform government and business approaches to data-driven issues to help protect people's personal data and to encourage innovation in the digital marketplace."

The proposed creation of the Data Commissioner raises many key questions that are not addressed in the budget, including the scope of this commissioner's specific responsibilities and powers, and how this commissioner will interact and work with the existing Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.