The Great Canadian Rights Grab

To keep the US happy, Mark Carney’s Liberal government is pushing Bill C-2 — expanding surveillance, limiting refugee protections, and eroding privacy in the name of national security. It’s Canada’s own PATRIOT Act, minus the excuse of an actual attack.

Mark Carney, Canada’s prime minister, during a news conference at the Walters Group steel construction facility in Hamilton, Ontario, on Wednesday, July 16, 2025. (Arlyn McAdorey / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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As Canadians began to tune out politics for the summer, Mark Carney’s Liberal government pushed forward with a border bill reminiscent of conservative security crackdowns on both sides of the forty-ninth parallel. Framed as a matter of getting things done at speed and scale — and with an eye toward placating the Trump administration in hopes of securing a trade deal — the Carney government tabled a bill that would grant extraordinary new powers to the state. Critics warn the bill carries significant risks.

The Liberals don’t seem especially troubled by these critiques — but they should be. Amnesty International has denounced the proposed law as an “attack” on the rights of asylum seekers, arguing it “would make it virtually impossible for most people entering Canada via the US to have their refugee claim reviewed by the Immigration and Refugee Board.”

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