TORONTO TELECOM LAWYER Mark Lewis thinks he knows a thing or two about the CRTC's rules for automated phone calls by political parties during elections.
So when he recently got two calls on his personal office phone line from the New Democratic Party – one from a candidate in a nearby riding neither his office nor his residence is in — he was outraged.
"It's just not right," he fumed in an interview, for two reasons: First, after the initial call he emailed the NDP to be put on the party's do not call list, apparently in vain. Second, why is he being called by a candidate he can’t vote for unless the party is using a robocaller dialing numbers sequentially, which the CRTC forbids?
For its part, the NDP proved hard to get hold of: Messages and email from a reporter to the office of the candidate, Olivia Chow in Spadina-Fort York, weren't answered.
Nor could a reporter speak to a media person at NDP headquarters. In an email response to an outline of Lewis' incident, press secretary Melanie Richer wrote that political parties aren't subject to the CRTC do not call list (see below), but also that "we will remove anyone who tells us they do not wish to be called."
"Please let the Toronto lawyer know that he can send us an email at media@ndp.ca and we will make sure his name is off of all lists," she added.
However Richer didn’t respond to a follow-up email asking for an interview about Lewis' allegation that NDP is trying to get around CRTC regulations.
The incident started July 24 when Lewis received a recorded call from the NDP inviting him to a political meeting. The beginning of the message was cut off, so the lawyer can't say who is was from. However, as required the message included an email address (contact@ndp.ca) and phone number.
He believes he called the 1-866 number and left a message. He also emailed the party, but rather than use the email address in the recorded message he sent it to ndpadmin@fed.ndp.ca.
"Please ensure that (his direct number) is deleted from your party’s robo-call machines and auto-dialers," read the message. "This number is on the National Do Not Call List. Please also delete (his office number)."
[Note the National Do Not Call List for consumers doesn’t have to be followed by political parties or candidates during elections. See more below from a CRTC spokesperson.]
Then on Aug. 5 he received a recorded call from Ms. Chow in Spadina-Fort York, although Lewis' office is in Toronto Danforth and he lives in Toronto St. Paul's. That recorded message ended with the same contact email and phone number as the first message. Somehow, it seems, Lewis' request to not get calls didn’t get through.
It's one of the reasons he suspects the NDP and/or Ms. Chow are using an automatic dialing-announcing device (ADAD) – also called a robodialer – that calls number sequentially – which is forbidden by CRTC rules.
"It seems to me they’re getting around the regulation(s) three or four different ways." – Mark Lewis
He also believes that recorded political calls have to disconnect if a live person doesn’t pick up the phone within 10 seconds. the call isn’t answered within 10 seconds by a live person.
It was suggested by a reporter these incidents are just early campaign glitches, but Lewis wasn't buying. "It seems to me they’re getting around the regulation(s) three or four different ways," he said.
In an email Patricia Valladao, the CRTC's manager of media relations noted its rules do not directly prohibit a call to a voter from a candidate in another riding, whether intentionally or by mistake. "While sequential dialing is indeed prohibited when making a telemarketing call or making a call through an ADAD device," she added, "a call from a candidate not in his riding is not necessarily indicative of sequential dialing."
She also outlined the following rules parties and candidates have to follow:
- Political entities are not subject to the National Do Not Call List(National DNCL) Rules. These rules prevent most telemarketers from making telemarketing calls to Canadians who have registered their telephone number on the National DNCL List. Because of the exemption, this means that political entities such as political parties and their candidates can call individuals who are registered on the National DNCL.
- Political entities conducting telemarketing calls for financial solicitation purposes, such as seeking donations, are subject to the Telemarketing Rules and therefore must, if requested, add a consumer to their Internal Do Not Call List (IDNCL). However, if the call is not for money purposes then the Telemarketing Rules do not apply.
- Lewis has misunderstood the “10-second” rule. ADAD calls are required to disconnect within 10 seconds of the person receiving the call hanging up, thus releasing the line and not blocking further calls, she wrote. There is no requirement that an ADAD call delivering a recorded message switch over to a live agent within 10 seconds.
There is however, a requirement that, in the event the actual recorded message exceeds 60 seconds, the identification information contained at the beginning of the message must repeated at the end of the call.
Asked by email how many complaints the commission has received so far in the campaign about automated political calls, Valladao wouldn’t go beyond these points.
Note the CRTC does have a Voter Contact Registry, but it isn't a do not call list. Created in 2014 to help Canadians identify anyone making political calls during elections, persons or groups using an automatic dialer for any purpose related to the election has to be registered. Political parties, candidates or individuals who use an internal phone service to make a live call don’t have to register.
