Facebook pressured Canada to ease up on data rules, U.K. reports say | CBC News

Documents show that Facebook'schief operating officer Sheryl Sandbergwas negotiating this deal with the previous Conservative government, namely then-industry minister Christian Paradis.

They show a global lobbying operation carried out by Facebook targeting legislators around the world, including in countries like the U.K., United States, Canada, India and Brazil.

In Canada's case, they threatened to withhold investment and job creation opportunities unless Canada adopted data policies that favoured Facebook.

"They were trying to get Canada to give them what they called a letter of comfort which would take a Canadian data centre out of Canadian regulation,"Duncan Campbell, a U.K.-based freelance investigative journalist who helped uncover the story, said.

The memos leaked to journalists detail what went on during lobbying efforts in Canada when the government expressed discomfort with the media giant's request.

MarneLevine,Facebook'sformer vice-president of global public policy wrote in onememo, first reported by Computer Weekly and the Guardian, who have seen the documents: "Sheryl took a firm approach and outlined that a decision on the datacentre was imminent.

The documents also show Levine complaining to her colleagues about an unnamedminister's aide, and explaining how Facebook officials madetheir way to a government reception to "cut the awful staff person out of the way" and give Levine direct access to Paradis.

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