Trudeau won’t comment on TikTok’s future in US as Liberals turn to app’s influencers

OAKVILLE, Ont. -Prime Minister Justin Trudeau refuses to comment on the future of TikTok in the United States, at a time when his own party is relying on the application and its influencers to convey the Liberals’ political message to Canadians.

The US Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would force TikTok’s parent company, Beijing-based ByteDance, to sell its stake in the social media app within a year or face a ban on the market. large platform.

The proposed ban was included in a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, and was signed into law on Wednesday by US President Joe Biden.

TikTok has since vowed to challenge the “unconstitutional law” in court.

Trudeau said he will not comment on what other governments are doing, but that his will continue to ensure the safety of Canadians.

“We know that the security, privacy and data protection of Canadians must be a first priority for us,” Trudeau said Wednesday.

“We have already taken important steps in this regard and will continue to do so. But we will act in a way that is appropriate for Canadians.”

The federal Liberals ordered a national security review of TikTok last September and the app is banned on federal government devices.

However, it is still used by the federal Liberal and New Democrat parties, who rely on it to reach young Canadians who are increasingly turning to the app to discover news, information and popular culture.

And over the past year, the federal government has invited influencers who have followers on TikTok to events and private briefings, including for housing announcements and the recent federal budget.

“Canadians consume more and more digital content. As the media landscape grows, so does our focus on how we communicate,” Mohammad Hussain, Trudeau’s spokesman, said last week.

TikTok is the fastest-growing social media app in Canada, a report last year from Metropolitan University of Toronto shows, but it’s also considered the least trustworthy.

For years, Western governments have expressed concern that the popular platform could put sensitive data in the hands of China’s government or be used as a disinformation tool.

Chinese law says the Beijing government can order companies to help it gather intelligence.

A 2022 intelligence report from Canada’s Privy Council Office shows that TikTok is the first Chinese-owned app to reach more than one billion users beyond China, “creating a ubiquitous, globally integrated influence and collection platform.” for Beijing to exploit.”

“Despite assurances, there is growing evidence that China can access TikTok data,” said the report, heavily redacted and released under the access to information law.

The Prime Minister’s Office did not say whether it supports ByteDance selling its stake in TikTok.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, who had a large following on the app, was just one federal politician affected by the government’s ban on the devices imposed last year.

He said officials informed him of their concerns around the app tracking him and his movements, noting that members of Parliament can be easily identified.

But the NDP has since logged back into the app, he said, as his team considers ways to get the leader himself back on TikTok “safely.”

“Our concern around TikTok is ensuring that users in Canada are safe, that their data and their privacy are protected,” Singh said Wednesday in Edmonton.

The Conservatives also complied with the directive, but they also “went a step further by completely suspending use of the app,” said Sebastian Skamski, spokesman for conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.

“Conservatives take all threats to privacy and security from foreign authoritarian regimes seriously and will always defend the individual privacy rights of Canadians,” he said.

“Justin Trudeau should come clean and make sure Canadians are aware of the risks associated with using the app.”

A TikTok official previously told a House of Commons committee that the company is taking steps to protect Canadians’ data by storing it on servers in the US, Malaysia and Singapore.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 24, 2024.