Our Security, Our Rights:National Security Green Paper, 2016
When former Bill C-51, the Anti-terrorism, Act. 2015 (ATA, 2015) was table in the House of Commons, many Canadians voiced concern with the Government’s approach to these responsibilities and whether the proposed legislation appropriately safeguards both security and rights. Those concerns have not diminished since the passage of the ATA, 2015. The Government is committed to openness, transparency, and accountability. An early The Government is committed to openness, transparency, and accountability. An early demonstration of this commitment was making public the Prime Minister’s mandate letters to Ministers, so that Canadians could see our full list of priorities. Reflecting the seriousness with whichthe Government regards the concerns about the ATA, 2015, our mandate letters direct us to work together to repeal its problematic elements and introduce new legislation that strengthens accountability and national security. In this respect, we have made commitments to:
- guarantee that all Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) warrants comply with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (The Charter);
- ensure all Canadians are not limited from legitimate protest and advocacy;
- enhance the redress process related to the Passenger Protect Program and address the issue of false positive matches to the list;
- narrow overly broad definitions, such as defining “terrorist propaganda” more clearly; and
- require a statutory review of the ATA, 2015 after three years.
In addition, we are establishing a statutory national security and intelligence committee of parliamentarians with broad access to classified information to examine how national security institutions are working. Further, we are also launching the Office of the community outreach and counter-radicalization coordinator to provide national coordination on preventing radicalization to violence; work with partners across communities, provinces, stakeholders and experts to ensure community resiliency; and, to develop a national strategy involving programming, policy and research.