UTGB Vol 5.pdf - Robson Hall Faculty of Law

C. History in the Legislature
The bill was introduced as the Personal Information Protection Act in November
2004. 27 It had its second reading the following May. There was some debate
about the bill, but because the government did not want to adopt the bill it was
not referred to a committee.
Feeling that the issue was too important to ignore, Ms. Taillieu reintroduced
the bill as the Personal Information Protection and Identity Theft Prevention Act in
the fourth session of the 38th legislature. The duty to notify was added to the bill
at this point, and its name was changed to reflect this. It was hoped that adding
"Identity Theft Prevention" to the title of the bill would generate some interest
in the public, thus increasing pressure on the government to consider the bill. 28
Again, there was some debate at the second reading, but the bill wasn't referred
to a committee. The bill has been reintroduced in the current session of the
legislature, but it does not appear that a different outcome will result. 29
IV. ANALYSIS OF BILL 207
A. What Does PIPITPA do
The purpose of this Act is to govern the collecrion, use and disclosure of personal
information by organizations in a manner that recognizes both the right of an
individual to have his or her personal information protected and the need of
organizations to collect, use or disclose personal information for purposes that are
reasonable. 30
Prior to PIPEDA, the only statutory protection afforded to Manitobans with
respect to privacy was:
• For data collected, held and used by the provincial government (FIPPA)
and federal government (through the federal Privacy Act 31 ); and
• For health information handled by doctors, hospitals, the province, and
potentially insurers (through PHIA).
Currently, organizations that are covered by the Privacy Act (such as federal
government organizations) are not covered by PIPEDA. 32
PIPITPA would extend privacy protection similar to that found in FIPPA or the
federal Privacy Act to interaction with all organizations that use, collect or
27
BUl 200, The Personal Information Protection Act, 3«1 Sess., 38rh Leg.• Manitoba, 2005.
28
Taillieu, supra note 23.
29
Bill 200, The Personal Information Protection and Identity Theft Prevention Act, ,Sth Sess., 38ch
Leg., Manitoba, 2006 was not enacted when the legislation session ended on 20 April 2007.
30
PIPITPA, supra note 1 at s. 3.
31
Privacy Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. p,21.
32
PIPEDA, supra note 2 at s. 4(2) (a).