Canada’s Prime Minister Trudeau slams Meta for blocking messages during wildfires

OTTAWA, Aug 21 (Reuters) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday criticized Meta (META.O) for banning domestic news from its platforms while wildfires rage, saying up-to-date information is crucial during a crisis .

“Facebook puts corporate profits ahead of people’s safety,” he said at a televised news conference in the Atlantic province of Prince Edward Island, saying the company’s actions were “unimaginable”.

Trudeau’s comments represent the government’s latest attack on Meta, which this month began blocking news on its Facebook and Instagram platforms for all users in Canada in response to a new law requiring internet giants to charge for news articles pay.

The Cabinet Ministers of the Federal Liberals described the ban as ruthless and irresponsible last week. Some people fleeing wildfires complained to domestic media that the ban prevented them from sharing important data about the fires.

“It’s about time we started expecting more from companies like Facebook that make billions of dollars off Canadians,” Trudeau said.

Meta was not immediately available for comment.

A company spokesman previously indicated that Canadians can still access information from official government agencies, emergency services and non-governmental organizations on the platform.

Facebook has also enabled the Safety Check feature, which allows users to signal that they are safe after a natural disaster or crisis.

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