Liberals’ anti-terrorism law expected in 2017

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Liberals’ anti-terrorism law expected in 2017

Online consultation runs until Dec. 1

Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press on September 9, 2016

The Liberal government’s promised changes to a controversial anti- terrorism law likely won’t come until next year, once officials have digested an array of public suggestions on revamping national security.

The government opened an online consultation Thursday, soliciting feedback on everything from sharing information and preventing attacks to conducting surveillance and ensuring intelligence agencies are accountable.

The consultation, which can be found at canada.ca/national-security-consultation, runs until Dec. 1.

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale told a news conference in Edmonton the government also hopes House of Commons and Senate committees will hold public hearings on the national security framework.

It means any legislation flowing from these reviews would not be tabled until December at the earliest and more likely in late winter or spring 2017.

In the 2015 election campaign, the Liberals promised to repeal “problematic elements” of omnibus security legislation, known as Bill C-51, ushered in by the previous Conservative government. The bill gave the Canadian Security Intelligence Service explicit powers to disrupt terrorist threats, not just gather information about them.

The legislation also created a new offence of promoting the commission of terrorist offences and broadened the government’s no-fly list powers. In addition, it expanded the sharing of federally held information about activity that “undermines the security of Canada.”

The Trudeau government has committed to ensure all CSIS warrants respect the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, preserve legitimate protest and advocacy and define terrorist propaganda more clearly.

The Liberals also plan to introduce new measures they say will do a better job of balancing collective security with rights and freedoms.

Civil society groups welcomed the public consultation, but stressed a need for a wide-ranging examination.

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Liberals’ anti-terrorism law expected in 2017