OTTAWA – A coalition of child advocates and medical organizations says the dangers children face online constitute a national emergency.
The advocates say children are being exploited, extorted, bullied and in some cases, have died as a result of online harms.
Groups representing Children First Canada, the Canadian Medical Association and several hospitals held a press conference on Parliament Hill Thursday.
They’re calling on the government to bring back the online harms bill that was introduced by former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s government but never became law.
The Liberals have signalled they will not bring the bill back in the same form, but will instead tackle aspects of online harms in other legislation.
Since that bill was introduced in 2024, the growing availability of artificial intelligence chatbots has led to new concerns about their effect on children, including cases involving suicide.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 20, 2025.
