The Liberals have finally responded — three weeks late — to Justice Paul Rouleau’s 56 recommended changes to prevent misuse of the Emergencies Act, by announcing that they will have more to say later.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc gave reporters the update on Wednesday after the Liberals missed the 12-month timeline given by Justice Rouleau back in February 2023 to respond to his recommendations.
Rouleau, who commissioned the federal inquiry into the Trudeau Government’s use of the Emergencies Act, gave 56 recommendations to the feds.
Many of the recommendations focused on improving collaboration between police services and jurisdictions, as well as the creation of a “major event management unit.”
In addressing the recommendations, LeBlanc said that the federal Liberals will begin to have “consultations” with groups.
On the recommendations to amend the Emergencies Act, the Public Safety Minister said “we do need more time because it’s complicated.”
He further said that a “thoughtful discussion” on the Emergencies Act will be coming “in the next number of months.”
“We are beginning detailed discussions with provinces on the Emergencies Act, but the good news is we’re also going to be able to reflect on the broader discussion of national security legislation modernization.”
The announcement comes six weeks after the Federal Court declared that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s invocation of the Emergencies Act in response to the Freedom Convoy protest violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
LeBlanc did not address the ruling, and instead relied on Rouleau’s report, where the commissioner determined Trudeau was justified in invoking the act.
Feds to give not Toronto, but Ottawa more police
LeBlanc also highlighted ongoing efforts to bolster policing coordination in Ottawa’s parliamentary precinct.
The Public Safety Minister further announced that he’s looking into increasing the police presence in Ottawa to establish a more “permanent coordination and presence of police officers in the parliamentary precinct and around Parliament Hill.”
