Federal government planning to consult widely before any changes are made to Emergencies Act
The federal government is open to possible changes to the Emergencies Act but says it first wants to consult widely on the law it invoked to quell “Freedom Convoy” protests two years ago.
In a final response Wednesday to a commission of inquiry, the Liberal government also outlined steps it is taking to improve the flow of intelligence and protect key transportation corridors.
However, the government played down any need to adopt many of the commission’s suggested changes to policing protocols — in some cases because police are already making adjustments.
The Public Order Emergency Commission led by Justice Paul
Rouleau made 56 recommendations, with almost two dozen specifically related to the emergencies law itself.
In early February 2022, downtown Ottawa was besieged by protesters, many in large trucks that rolled into town beginning in late January. Initially billed as a demonstration against COVID-19 health restrictions, the gathering attracted people with various grievances against Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau and his government.
Meanwhile, the protests spread and trucks clogged key routes to the United States at Windsor, Ont., and Coutts.
On Feb. 14, 2022, the government invoked the Emergencies Act. That allowed for temporary measures including regulation and prohibition of public assemblies, the designation of secure places, direction to banks to freeze assets and a ban on support for participants.
It was the first time the law had been used since it replaced the War Measures Act in 1988.
In a Feb. 15 letter to premiers, Trudeau said the federal government believed it had reached a point “where there is a national emergency arising from threats to Canada’s security.”
In a recent decision, Federal Court Justice Richard Mosley said invoking the Emergencies Act was unreasonable and led to the infringement of constitutional rights. The federal government is appealing the ruling.
However, the Public Order Emergency Commission, which carried out a mandatory review after use of the act, found early last year that the government met the very high legal standard for using the law.
Even so, Rouleau called for an indepth review of the provisions dealing with public order emergencies.
The federal response says the government will engage provinces, territories, Indigenous partners and civil society on Rouleau’s recommendations concerning the Emergencies Act, “including seeking views on potential legislative amendments.”
Rouleau found the definition of “threats to the security of Canada” in the Emergencies Act was incorporated from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act, the law governing Canada’s main spy agency.
“This said, the CSIS Act and the Emergencies Act are different regimes that operate independently from each other,” he wrote. “They serve different purposes, involve different actors, and implicate different considerations.”
The government indicates it will await the outcome of the ongoing court proceedings over use of the Emergencies
Act, among other factors, before deciding if changes are warranted.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc told a news conference Wednesday that any change to the definition of threats to security in the Emergencies Act should be done in the context of “a thoughtful, more holistic” review of national security legislation.
A number of Rouleau’s recommendations touch directly on other levels of government, LeBlanc added. “Changing the Emergencies Act necessarily has an impact in terms of the relationship between Canada and provinces and territories.”
Rouleau recommended that when a government declares a public order emergency, it should be required to turn over to the resulting commission of inquiry all information, advice and recommendations provided to the federal cabinet, cabinet committees or individual ministers.
The Trudeau government says while it did give Rouleau some cabinet information on “an exceptional and voluntary basis,” it will be up to a future government to do a “fact-specific public interest balancing analysis” before deciding whether a commission should be granted access to cabinet secrets.
During the Ottawa protest, the usually calm streets around Parliament Hill were beset by blaring horns, diesel fumes, makeshift encampments and even a hot tub and bouncy castle as participants settled in.
The influx of people, including some with roots in the far-right movement, forced many businesses to close temporarily and aggravated residents with noise, pollution and harassing behaviour.