Meg Davis, chief development officer, and Kristina Verner, vice-president of innovation, sustainability and prosperity, are testifying before the group of MPs as we publish. In their opening statements, Davis and Verner stressed a commitment to privacy by design and that they had been working with former adviser Ann Cavoukian to ensure that it was implemented on the Quayside development. They also promised that any data collected for the project would be stored in Canada. Meanwhile, real-estate developer Stephen Diamond is reportedly all three government levels’ top choice to become the agency’s new chair; his term as a city-appointed member of the board ends in April. (The Logic, Globe and Mail)

Talking point: Diamond was close to resigning from the board last December when he reportedly received a phone call from Toronto’s mayor convincing him to stay. The ethics committee has become Ottawa’s main venue to talk tech regulation, and Sidewalk Toronto has been a key topic of discussion. NDP ethics critic Charlie Angus has called for the project to be suspended over concerns about the short timeline of the Request for Proposals and Sidewalk Labs executives’ lobbying of top government officials. Those concerns are on his agenda for today’s hearing. Conservative MP Peter Kent has also previously raised questions about the Quayside’s data and privacy protections, citing privacy expert Cavoukian’s resignation as adviser to Sidewalk Labs.