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“So far as we see, I think, democracy continues to thrive in these jurisdictions,” said Therrien.

Speaking to the privacy committee on Thursday afternoon, Therrien echoed recent comments made by Apple CEO Tim Cook that there is a “data industrial complex” harvesting and profiting off massive piles of information about people.

Canadians increasingly want to understand the nature and source of communications that are reaching them. An important part of understanding that is transparency

“No one has consented to having their personal information weaponized against them,” said Therrien.

At the very least, Canadians should have the right to access any data the parties hold about them, said Therrien. That’s a rule that exists in Europe, but not in Canada.

“It’s something eminently reasonable and that Canadians would expect,” said Therrien.

Parties will also have no independent oversight and no requirement to report any data breaches they suffer, even though revamped privacy rules now require that for Canadian companies.

NDP MP Nathan Cullen said Tuesday that the Liberal argument against privacy rules for political parties is so unpersuasive that it makes him wonder what kind of digital campaigning the party is up to that might be threatened by those rules.

Therrien said he understood the difference in the relationship between political parties and electors and commercial actors and customers, which means there would slight differences in how the rules would be enforced on parties. For example, a politician is allowed access to apartment buildings for door-knocking, whereas a door-to-door salesman can be turfed from the property. Political parties would have more leeway to contact people online and by phone, because it’s part of the broader electoral conversation and the political process.