Carpay: Tell Parliament to reject Bill C-9, the Combating Hate Act

By John Carpay 

November 18th, 2025

BURLINGTON, ON

If Parliament passes Bill C-9, the Combatting Hate Act, Canada will become more like the United Kingdom, where more than 30 people are arrested every day for “speech crimes.”

UK police now routinely arrest people for offensive tweets. Police issue warnings to citizens about their political commentary. Police have even arrested parents in front of their children over private WhatsApp messages.

This is the real-world outcome of vague “hate” laws like Bill C-9.

What we’re doing about it

The Justice Centre has provided its submission to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. We have also informed all 343 Members of Parliament (of all parties) that Bill C-9:

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  John Carpay,  President and Founder, Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms. 

  removes the requirement that the Attorney General consent to prosecutions for hate propaganda offences, which will result in far more criminal prosecutions against Canadians for what they say on social media and elsewhere;

• is politically motivated, as was shown when Justice Minister Sean Fraser lamented “rising antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia and transphobia” but said nothing about the dozens of Christian churches that have been destroyed by arson;

• fails to provide a clear and coherent definition of “hatred,” such that citizens cannot know when they are – or are not – committing a Criminal Code offence. Criminal charges and prosecutions will depend on the feelings and subjective assessments of police, prosecutors and judges;

• unnecessarily increases the existing power of judges to impose harsher sentences in cases where the judge feels that a crime was motivated by hate; maximum prison sentences can be doubled;

• duplicates existing Criminal Code provisions that already make it illegal to block access to houses of worship and other buildings and structures. Canadians need and deserve better enforcement of existing laws, not virtue-signalling like Bill C-9.

In a word, this legislation is redundant, arbitrary, and damaging to your fundamental rights and freedoms.

Freedom of expression is the foundation of every other freedom. If Parliament passes Bill C-9, Canadians will face more criminal prosecutions over what they say.

If the erosion of free speech can happen in the UK – the birthplace of parliamentary democracy, it can happen here. Many Canadian journalists, writers, podcasters, politicians, commentators, and citizen activists will self-censor to avoid the risk of a hate-speech prosecution.

Our lawyers and policy analysts continue the fight against unjust laws like Bill C-9 every day.   The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good people to do nothing. Do your part today: defend freedom of expression and urge your MP to vote against Bill C-9

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John Carpay,  President and Founder, Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms.   Freedom Convoy lawyer John Carpay, president of the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF), has been disbarred by Alberta’s Law Society and can no longer practice law in the province.