Records reveal RCMP-CBSA border-probe tensions
RECORDS REVEAL TENSION BETWEEN RCMP, CBSA
The RCMP tried a few years ago to wrestle away control of organized crime investigations being pursued by the Canada Border Services Agency, newly released records show.
The proposal did not sit well with the border agency and never went ahead. But even as both agencies insist they have since struck a collaborative relationship, security experts say the failed proposal illustrates ongoing tensions between the two agencies, which share the responsibility of ensuring the border’s integrity.
“This reflects an ongoing tug of war of who’s actually in charge when it comes to investigations,” said Christian Leuprecht, a professor at Royal Military College of Canada and Queen’s University who specializes in security and defence matters.
Figuring out who’s in charge of an investigation can be difficult when a case involves a mix of criminal, customs or immigration violations, such as an organized crime network that uses the border as a conduit for the movement of drugs, contraband tobacco, people or counterfeit goods.
“We live in a complex globalized world. … Many of the immigration violations we see also have an organized crime connection,” Leuprecht said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent appointment of Bill Blair, Toronto’s former chief of police, to the newly created position of minister of border security and organized crime reduction suggests some kind of political intervention may be needed to sort out these competing jurisdictions and mandates, Leuprecht said.
But in an email Sunday, a spokeswoman for Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, who still retains oversight over both agencies, said: “The RCMP and the CBSA manage our borders in a manner that is seamless, cooperative and in the best interests of public safety.
Operationally, each of the organizations brings its expertise and resources to bear — the combined weight of which is stronger and more effective than either would be on their own.”
Border security has become a major point of discussion on Parliament Hill as lawmakers wrangle over how to deal with the influx of asylum-seeking migrants, as well as the smuggling of handguns.
According to a CBSA briefing document requested by the National Post in 2015 but only recently released under access-toinformation legislation, the Mounties wanted to add language to a memorandum of understanding between them and CBSA that would require CBSA “to refer all cases of suspected organized crime to (the RCMP) for the right of first refusal.”
CBSA officials were clearly not happy with this idea, telling then-CBSA president Luc Portelance it would “involve a significant number of referrals to the RCMP, encompassing a wide variety of topics of concern to the CBSA and that fall within the agency’s investigative mandate.
“This approach would significantly reduce CBSA’s role in the investigation of these cases and impact its ability to effectively carry out its mandate and responsibilities.”
A spokeswoman for CBSA told the National Post the RCMP proposal was ultimately rejected. Instead, the two agencies agreed on an approach for referring investigations “that respects the mandate, authorities and investigative priorities of both organizations.”
An RCMP spokesman said the original proposal was intended to “ensure a uniform interpretation between both organizations regarding the agreed upon division of roles and responsibilities.”
Both agencies have since “adopted a mutually beneficial approach that is aligned with each agency’s mandate and strategic priorities.”
Leuprecht said while both agencies have shown they can work constructively together on an ad hoc basis, coordination issues persist at the strategic level — issues that likely can’t be resolved without some kind of government intervention.
“It’s probably not helpful when the two lead agencies are trying to figure out who’s in charge,” Leuprecht said. “We can’t be surprised we’re struggling a little bit getting things done at the border.”
Leuprecht said the government needs to move away from the current hybrid approach to protecting the border — the CBSA is in charge of border security at points of entry, while the RCMP is responsible for border security between ports of entry — and give sole authority to the border specialists at CBSA. A single-agency approach is used in the U.S., UK and Australia, he said.
“In the 21st century, we really need people who are experts at managing the whole border, who are consummate experts and professionals — that’s their bread and butter.”
Leuprecht notes the RCMP’s mandate at the border dates back to a 1932 orderin-council. While the RCMP has accepted the role, it is not sufficiently resourced to do it effectively, he said.
Kelly Sundberg, a former CBSA officer who is now a justice studies professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, agrees the RCMP is stretched thin and “trying to be too much to too many people.”
It’s time, he said, for the government to give CBSA the resources and manpower so it can have full run of its investigative and intelligence-gathering powers.
This should also include giving CBSA an expanded presence overseas at embassies so it can keep pace with organized crime groups involved in the trafficking of people, drugs and weapons. The border is no longer a line along the 49th parallel but is “elastic” and “fluid,” he said.
Leuprecht said Canada can no longer assume that Canada’s close cooperation with the U.S. along the border will stay that way, which is why it may have to do more “heavy lifting” in the future.
Whether that means greater para-militarization of the border remains to be seen.
But taking no action at the border, he said, could be a political liability come next year’s election.