OTTAWA 鈥� Canadians could be seeing more junk in their inboxes if the federal government moves to amend its anti-spam laws, as recently recommended by a House of Commons committee.

The NDP are sounding the alarm that the recommended changes to the rules around companies sending consumers texts, emails, and other electronic messages, could loosen the interpretation of the law in a way that could result in an increase in the amount of spam mail consumers receive.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no doubt that this piece of legislation is so germane to their life that it can be easily overlooked, but at the same time could have some of the most severe consequences for them, their family, and their businesses,鈥� said NDP innovation critic Brian Masse in a press conference on Parliament Hill Wednesday.

His concern stems from recommendations to Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains, made in a House Industry, Science, and Technology Committee report. The report detailed the committee鈥檚 findings after conducting a routine review of Canada鈥檚 Anti-Spam Legislation.

Masse said he wanted to raise the issue because the tabling of the committee report was buried in the end-of-sitting hubbub last week.

The report recommends making several 鈥渃larifications鈥� to the law, including wiping the word 鈥渟pam鈥� from the name of the law.

The committee recommended the law name be changed to: 鈥淓lectronic Commerce Protection Act.鈥�

Among the other recommended changes in the committee report:

  • Clarify the definition of 鈥渃ommercial electronic message鈥� and 鈥渆lectronic address鈥�;
  • Examine various provisions to not create unintended costs to comply with the law, citing examples like administrative and transactional messages; and
  • Look at the way the law is being applied to charities and non-profits.

鈥淓lectronic messaging is no longer just sitting at your desktop anymore, it鈥檚 what you carry around and you make phone calls for your kids, for your family, for emergencies, for businesses. Having it jammed up with unsolicited and unwanted electronic messaging, that is counterproductive,鈥� he said.

The report also noted that some witnesses that testified at the committee on this study suggested switching to an opt-out based system, instead of the current requirement for companies to get consumer consent before sending them electronic messages.

The law as is came, into force in 2014 to try to curb the amount of spam Canadians were receiving. It puts rules in place for how businesses and organizations can communicate electronically with clients, and how their personal information can be used for marketing.

The report states that since the rules were put in place, the amount of spam in Canada has decreased by a third.

The federal government  halted the implementation of a part of Canada鈥檚 anti-spam law, which would have allowed Canadians to sue businesses that violate spam rules. The part of the law, called the "private right of action" was scheduled to take effect July 1. But in response to "broad-based concerns" raised by businesses and various organizations, the government announced in June that the provision has been suspended indefinitely.

Masse said the committee recommendations aimed at 鈥渨atering down鈥� the bill鈥檚 wording can be traced back to testimony made by some businesses who argued the rules are too prescriptive, costly to follow, and have had a chilling effect on commercial electronic communications.

He thinks making these changes would be rewarding bad behaviour, instead of benefitting the companies that are following the law, and have adopted good consumer contact practices by setting up subscription services, for example.

In the report, consumer groups argued that there has yet to be enough data collected to support changing the law.

The NDP are recommending instead, the federal government should offer training to businesses that are having trouble navigating the current rules, to address their concerns.

Masse also suggested collecting statistics on the effectiveness of the law as-is before making any tweaks.

While a committee making recommendations doesn鈥檛 compel the minister to change the law, it鈥檚 likely their work would be considered if Bains鈥攚ho is responsible for the legislation鈥� does decide to look at changing it.

Masse said he wanted to flag the potential implications of these recommended changes before that bridge is crossed.

"We need to reinforce electronic messaging responsibility and some of it we can鈥檛 control, but the ones we can, we should be doing something on it," said Masse.

He sent a letter to the minister outlining his concerns on Wednesday.

In a statement, the minister鈥檚 office said they will be reviewing the recommendations.

Bains' office said they want to make sure there is a balanced approach that "protects consumer trust in the online market while not burdening legitimate businesses and organizations with unnecessary red tape and costs."