FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL/TERRITORIAL JUSTICE MINISTERS WORK TOGETHER TO FIGHT TERRORISM

OTTAWA, NOVEMBER 28, 2001--Federal Justice Minister Anne McLellan and Federal Solicitor General Lawrence MacAulay met today with their provincial and territorial counterparts to discuss how best to work together to fight global terrorism.

Today's meeting was a continuation of the September 11th meeting in Nova Scotia that was adjourned early because of the terrorist attacks in the United States. Much of today's discussion centered on Canada's Anti-Terrorism Plan and new public safety and anti-terrorism legislation.

Ministers McLellan and MacAulay pledged to work with the provinces and territories to:

• ensure timely information sharing about anti-terrorism efforts and ensure coordination on the implementation of Bill C-36;
• track, collect and document information relating to the use of Bill C-36 measures such as preventive arrest and investigative hearings; and
• set up a mechanism to examine possible cost-implications for policing, prosecution and court costs in connection with implementation and application of Bill C-36.

"Our close working relationship with the provinces and territories is the great strength of our criminal justice system and the envy of many nations. What we determined today is that in the post-September 11th world, we must do even more to increase coordination and collaboration to ensure Bill C-36 and other anti-terrorism measures are used effectively. All jurisdictions agreed to work together," said Minister McLellan.

"Canadians expect us to work together to protect them from terrorists and that is exactly what we have done today. The key is coordination and collaboration among our law enforcement agencies, which is already good. What we want to do in concert with provincial and territorial counterparts is build on this through effective use of Bill C-36 and our Integrated Justice Information sharing initiative," said Mr. MacAulay.

Since September 11th, the federal government has invested $280-million in its Anti-Terrorism Plan — this brings to $1.8-billion the total amount the Government of Canada has invested in policing, security and intelligence since Budget 2000.

The Government of Canada's Anti-terrorism Plan has four objectives:

• to prevent terrorists from getting into Canada and protect Canadians from terrorist acts;
• to activate tools to identify, prosecute, convict and punish terrorists;
• to keep the Canada-U.S. border secure and a contributor to economic security; and
• to work with the international community to bring terrorists to justice and address the root causes of terrorism.

All jurisdictions also expressed concern that they need the tools for law enforcement that C-24 — the Organized Crime Bill — provides. Ministers agreed that the existing control and accountability mechanisms applicable to the Law Enforcement Justification procedures in Bill C-24, and in federal and provincial legislation are fully sufficient to provide the necessary and proper civilian oversight. Any additional layer of oversight would cause unnecessary confusion of roles and jurisdictional conflicts.

-30-

Ref.:

Office of the Minister of Justice
Farah Mohamed
Director of Communications
Minister's Office
(613) 992-4621

Office of the Solicitor General
Dan Brien
Director of Communications
Minister's Office
(613) 991-2924