Gabriel Ste-Marie

This is a very important and interesting topic. I would like to say quickly that it might be a good idea in the future for us to meet as a subcommittee or informally, all the parties together, to get an overview of each parliamentary period. Nonetheless, I fully support this motion.

Thank you. It's not just about a specific case, but about the mechanism in general. It was the same thing with Meta. Witnesses told us that when they reported fraudulent advertising, it took several days for any follow-up. Earlier, you answered by saying that these were hypothetical questions. This is a specific case, and this kind of thing happens often. So you have to put mechanisms in place [more]

Do you consider yourself a good corporate citizen here in Canada?

Thank you very much.

Could you provide an answer in writing? That is required under a law that came into force in Quebec last week. We would appreciate a written response. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon to my colleagues. Good afternoon, Ms. Patell. Thank you for being here. Let me start with a specific case. Three weeks ago, my assistant Marc‑André saw a fake YouTube ad in which a fake Mark Carney was telling people to make investments. The ad was similar to the one that led to a class action lawsuit a year ago. We are still seeing fake ads like this a [more]

Thank you. What you're saying is that your platforms like YouTube are running fraudulent ads featuring a fake Mark Carney. One person lost $30,000 because of that, and you're saying you're not even making money on it. Wouldn't it therefore be urgent to block all those ads? Along the same lines, why do the advertisers who post these ads on YouTube and your other platforms continue to appear in [more]

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Ms. Patell, if fraudsters commit fraud and these ads are published on your platforms, you certainly have some responsibility, in my opinion, and you must take it. Google's parent company, Alphabet, does not report or publish its profits or revenues by country, while its net profits exceed $130 billion U.S. globally. Google's estimated revenues in Canada are $12 billion [more]

Thank you, Mr. Chair. People from Wealthsimple told the committee that other countries have laws requiring platforms such as YouTube to verify the identity of ad buyers when those financial ads promise high returns. They are asked to verify the identity of the advertisers to ensure that they are not fraudsters, and that must be done properly by an institution that is recognized in the country. [more]

Thank you for your answer, but, for a financial ad, looking at the driver's licence of a fraudster or an honest person is not enough. You should really check whether the institution is recognized by the authorities here, and therefore whether it is authorized to publish that type of advertising. If an individual tells you to do such and such a thing, it should simply be blocked, and only real [more]

Ms. Burke, it's really been a pleasure working with you. I thank you for everything you've done, and I wish you all the best in the future. It's well deserved. I've worked with a number of clerks over the years, and as Ms. Dancho said, you are without a doubt one of the most seasoned. What I like about you is that, even when there is a lot of pressure, even when the situation is complex, even [more]

My time is up, but I just want to remind you that I started out by saying that, after my assistant reported a fraudulent ad, no mechanism was put in place, he received no acknowledgement of receipt and the ad continued to be published for days. Thank you very much.

Thank you for your answer, but let me clarify my question. In Quebec, the Autorité des marchés financiers or the Office de la protection du consommateur have ordered that those ads be removed. Will you commit to immediately complying with those orders, even without a court decision?