Home Newsroom 2005 News releases (archive) 2005-11-17: New Emergency Management Act introduced Backgrounder: Introduction of the Emergency Management Act

Introduction of the Emergency Management Act

Canadians want assurances that the impact of emergencies will be minimized, assistance will be available and disruptive effects will be limited and short-lived. The National Security Policy (April 2004) recognizes that addressing complex threats and emergencies requires a coordinated approach with provinces, territories, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the private sector and international partners.

The Canadian emergency management community has also realized the importance of a “whole of government” response framework.

To address these issues, the Government of Canada has been pursuing its commitments under the National Security Policy, notably the review of its statutory framework for emergency management activities. This review has resulted in the proposal to repeal the Emergency Preparedness Act and replace it with the Emergency Management Act (EMA).

The Emergency Management Act is built on the concepts found in the Emergency Preparedness Act . The Emergency Preparedness Actestablishes civil emergency planning and preparedness as key government responsibilities; outlines roles for the PSEP Minister and other Ministers; provides for federal-provincial cooperation; and enables post-disaster financial assistance to provinces.

The purpose of the new Act is to strengthen the readiness of the Government of Canada to prepare for, mitigate the impact of, and respond to all hazards in Canada . It recognizes that emergency management in an evolving risk environment requires a collective and concerted approach between all jurisdictions including the private sector and non-governmental organizations.

Critical infrastructure consists of physical and information technology facilities, networks, services and assets that are vital to the health, safety, security or economic well-being of Canadians or the effective functioning of governments in Canada. Critical infrastructure protection is one of the emerging challenges of modern emergency management. The interdependence of cyber and critical infrastructures makes cyber security an integral component of that challenge. Canada’s critical infrastructure is increasingly integrated with American and global systems. This calls for widespread cooperation and information sharing on cyber threats, incidents, and protective measures.

The ability to rapidly exchange specific and reliable information in a timely manner with key partners such as the private sector is essential to emergency management and critical infrastructure protection and plays a vital role in Canada ’s overall public safety. Assessing threats and vulnerabilities, improving warning and reporting capabilities, analyzing attacks to develop better defences and responses, are the primary goals of information sharing. These activities will contribute to mitigating risks by informing critical infrastructure owners and operators of potential or imminent threats or incidents.

Within the new Emergency Management Act, the Access to Information Act is being amended. This is to give clear protection to information supplied to the Government of Canada that, if disclosed, would reveal the vulnerability of critical infrastructures belonging to the private sector.

The Emergencies Act (EA) is often associated with the Emergency Preparedness Act ; however, the function of these two statutes is quite different. The EA is the instrument of last resort to deal with emergencies when all other laws in Canada prove inadequate and through the Emergencies Act, Parliament ensures that the Government has the necessary authority to quickly marshal the necessary resources to respond to them. The purpose of the EMA is to address the need to prepare for and respond to emergencies of any kind. The greater majority of emergencies will be dealt with under well-established and well-practiced plans and arrangements developed under the proposed EMA.