Canadian Child Porn Bill Resubmitted

OTTAWA — A child porn bill that was introduced with the promise of promoting "the most comprehensive child protection regime of any country in the world" was re-submitted today amid concerns over possible civil rights abuses.

At issue is an artistic merit defense that has been narrowed even as the scope of the bill’s definition of child pornography has expanded. Liberal Senator Serge Joyal and a number of other officials are concerned about the bill’s requirement that artists appeal to child pornography charges on a case-by-case basis to prove a “legitimate purpose” in creating work.

Under the un-amended bill, which was introduced as Bill C-2 by Justice Minister Irwin Cotler last year, those accused of child pornography would need to prove that possession or dissemination of the material in question was done in pursuit of the administration of justice, science, medicine, education or art, and that that material doesn’t "pose an undue risk of harm to children."

Joyal and like-minded Senators note that law enforcement officials or doctors would be less likely to be required to defend their possession of suspect material than artists, so Joyal is re-submitting the bill with annotations, or observations, which Canadian legislative processes recognize as a means of officially recognizing the concerns of committee members.

Some Canadian conservatives disagree that there should be any artistic defense against possession at all.

"Anything that leaves open the possibility that child pornography can be interpreted in any fashion as artistic, to me, is ludicrous,” said deputy conservative chief Peter Mackay. “We need to do away with this loophole.”

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Whisper Fans Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

Whisper Fans has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

Utherverse Launches 'Red Light Center' Virtual World

Virtual reality and metaverse technology company Utherverse has launched its new virtual world, RedLightCenter.io.

European Commission Approves AV Guidelines, Unveils Prototype App

The European Commission on Monday released its final, approved guidelines for protecting minors online under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and made public a “white label” age verification app intended to help sites and platforms comply with age verification rules under the DSA.

Show More