Canadians are reacting to comments made by opposition leader Pierre Poilievre who says a Conservative government would require people visiting pornographic websites to show ID to gain access.
His party is sponsoring Senate private member’s Bill S-210 that promises to require age verification for people to view pornography online, The Canadian Press reports.
The proposed law would obligate porn sites to verify its users are of legal age before granting access. It would also penalize sites that do not comply, according to The Canadian Press.
However, the bill does not specify how the rule would be implemented.
Now Toronto reached out to Poilievre’s office but did not receive a response in time of publication.
Following Poilievre’s remarks, Canadians took to social media to share their thoughts and concerns.
“Does he [Pierre Poilievre] expect people to send their driver license to a porn site?” one X user said.
Others pointed out that such a rule would be almost impossible to enforce and that there are far more pressing issues to be addressed.
“There is so much more to worry about than this little tidbit. The web is full of porn and there is no way you are going to stop a kid who can use a computer tons better than him or probably their parents,” one person wrote.
“People living in the streets unable to get health care and this is a Conservative priority?” another user X posted.
The proposal has raised concerns about privacy and data protection, but Sebastian Skamski, a spokesman for Poilievre told the Canadian Press that “Conservatives do not support any measures that would allow the imposition of a digital ID or infringe on the privacy of adults and their freedom to access legal content online.”
Pornhub told the Canadian Press that it is fighting the bill and said that “any regulations requiring the collection of significant amounts of highly sensitive personal information will put user safety in jeopardy.”
