Senate to begin review of Bill C-51
The Conservatives’ tone on C-51, the anti-terror bill, shifted noticeably Monday, with the minister in charge now saying he welcomes amendments to the disparaged legislation.
Speaking to reporters after testifying on the bill before a Senate committee Monday evening, Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney alluded to four mostly minor amendments that government members are expected to vote in favour of at a Commons’ committee Tuesday. Basic details of the changes were leaked to parliamentary reporters Friday afternoon.
“We are open to amendments that will increase and clarify the bill (and) that will keep the goal of the bill, which is to protect Canadians from terrorism,” Blaney said following the Senate national security committee hearing.
“Also, (to) make sure that the bill is targeted at terrorists, not at protesters nor at other individuals who could feel (because of ) the wording of the bill that they were threatened. I certainly would welcome amendments in that sense.”
Since the proposed sweeping legislation was tabled in the House Jan. 30, Blaney has steadfastly ruled out making any amendments and attacked many critics who called for changes.
Monday’s Senate hearing opens yet another front in the government’s effort to make C-51 law before the June 23 summer recess.
It is fast-tracking a review of the bill prior to its formal arrival in the Upper House later this spring, with at least 12 hours of testimony planned in the coming weeks. Experts are to include Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien and some others who were not invited to speak before the Commons’ public security committee review of the bill.
Meanwhile, a Commons committee starts a clause-by-clause review of the bill on Tuesday. The four government amendments are expected to be adopted.
NDP and Liberal opposition members are expected to push for even more changes, but will likely be overruled by the committee’s Conservative majority. The biggest demands from opposition members, legal scholars and other critics of the bill have been for removing the proposed disruption powers for CSIS and for greater oversight and review of Canada national security apparatus. The amendments are: Changing the definition of what constitutes an “activity that undermines the security of Canada,” by removing the word “lawful” from a clause that said such activity does not include “lawful advocacy, protest, dissent or artistic expression.”
The section is part of the omnibus bill’s proposed Security of Canada Information Sharing Act. First Nations, environmentalists, civil liberty advocates and others feared that unlawful, but peaceful, civil protests would be caught by the legislation, therefore allowing 17 government departments and agencies to share and collate personal information about protesters as suspected national security targets.
Removing language from the bill that would have allowed those federal departments and agencies to share information about suspect individuals and business “to any person, for any purpose.”
Critics said that could lead to Canadians’ personal information being shared with foreign governments and their security agencies.
Fixing language related to Canada’s “no-fly” list that would have allowed the government to direct air carriers to do “anything ” considered reasonable and necessary to prevent a listed individual from acting against national security.
Instead, carriers will be required “to take a specific, reasonable and necessary action.”
For greater clarity, adding language to a controversial section of the bill that would empower CSIS agents to take direct action to thwart national security threats. The change would stipulate that CSIS agents, who are civilians, not police officers, do not have arrest powers.