Key facts
- Canadian opposition leader Avi Lewis is urging the government to block a data-sharing deal between Thomson Reuters and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
A Canadian opposition party leader is urging the government to block a data-sharing deal between Thomson Reuters and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The deal allows ICE to access Thomson Reuters' Clear database for identifying alleged voter and immigration fraud.
The controversy highlights concerns over the use of private data for immigration and election integrity enforcement, and the ethical implications for Canadian corporations involved in such agreements with U.S. agencies.
Avi Lewis, the federal leader of Canada's New Democratic Party (NDP), has called on the Mark Carney government to block a data-sharing agreement between Canadian media conglomerate Thomson Reuters and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Lewis expressed strong disapproval of the contract, stating that complicity between Canadian corporations and ICE should be illegal.
The deal, reportedly worth US$125 million, grants ICE access to Thomson Reuters' Clear database. This database includes property records, social media information, and geolocation data, which ICE intends to use to identify alleged voter fraud and immigration fraud. Thomson Reuters has been providing ICE with access to its Clear database since 2015, initially for tracking individuals for deportation. Critics have previously alleged that these databases have been used to facilitate human rights abuses.
The current contract is notable for its stated purpose of supporting the Trump administration's objectives concerning alleged voter fraud, a claim that has been widely disputed by U.S. election officials. Thomson Reuters, owned by the Woodbridge Company, has declined to comment on specific customer contracts but stated on its website that the Clear tool is licensed to select businesses, law enforcement, and government agencies for legitimate investigations and is not a surveillance tool.
Lewis urged the federal government to deny export permits to companies selling equipment to ICE and to withdraw public subsidies or contracts from any companies dealing with the agency. He argued that blocking this contract would be a step towards asserting Canadian economic independence. Law professor Joel Bakan suggested that Canada's Special Economic Measures Act could potentially be invoked to restrict companies from engaging with ICE, citing the agency's alleged involvement in human rights violations, though he noted the political unlikelihood of such a measure against the U.S.