A fine balance: ISS helps to safeguard national security, spur economy

Being charged with protecting Canada’s most sensitive assets and ensuring proper security measures in government contracting isn’t PWGSC’s most well-known operation to the public. When the topic arises with Industrial Security Sector (ISS) Director General Gerry Deneault, it becomes apparent that it warrants a higher profile.

“We have a strong, robust, Industrial Security Program in PWGSC and that’s something we can be very proud of as a Department,” says Mr. Deneault. “In addition to contributing to the safety and security of Canadians, this Program opens up market opportunities in Canada and internationally and helps the entire Canadian industrial machinery.”

As part of the Industrial Security Program, Mr. Deneault’s Sector has a mandate to ensure that the proper safeguards are in place for protected and classified information related to Government of Canada contracts awarded to the private sector. The end result means lucrative dividends for all the stakeholders that are involved. The strength of its security safeguards means that ISS — celebrating its 65th anniversary this year — facilitates the ability of Canadian industry to bid for classified contracts in foreign countries, while maintaining the confidence of NATO nations and Canada’s other allies in how it deals with classified information.

“We are the largest procurement organization in the Government of Canada. There’s a logic to having this Program here,” says Mr. Deneault, who is quick to add that the ISS protects billions of dollars in annual trade with the US that would otherwise disappear.

ISS is in the business of protecting information that could be a threat to national security if it were to fall into the wrong hands. When PWGSC launches a call for bids on a contract that contains sensitive information (such as a contract to develop targeting systems for the military), ISS steps in to ensure that every party making a bid has the proper security clearances before it is awarded. To date, 9,500 businesses ranging from individual contractors to multinational corporations are registered with ISS.

“It’s a very big number per capita,” says Albert Bissonnette, Director of the Canadian and International Industrial Security Directorate, a branch that falls under the ISS umbrella. “A comparable program running in New Zealand, which has an eighth of the population, has 132 companies registered.”

ISS handles over 90,000 personnel security clearances a year, adding to an existing database of 340,000 individuals that have already been screened. The Sector further conducts 2,000 on-site company inspections a year to ensure all sensitive material is appropriately protected when it is in the private sector.

Keeping a watchful eye on Controlled Goods

ISS is also responsible for the security of controlled goods in Canada. Among its broad-reaching list are items ranging from anti-tank weapons, certain chemical and biological agents, to aircraft. The Sector ensures that every organization in a position to examine, possess or transfer these items is registered with PWGSC and executes on-going inspections to keep things secure.

“These items are protected because they could result in a danger to the safety of Canadians, our US neighbours and other allies if they fell into the wrong hands. This is a heavy public security responsibility which PWGSC takes very seriously,” says Mr. Deneault.

The flash from an 84 mm Carl Gustav recoilless rifle round lights up the range outside Kabul, Afghanistan. These high-explosive, anti-tank rounds and the rifles are only a few of the many items on the ISS Directorate’s list of controlled goods.

There are big things on the horizon for ISS as it continues to expand its role in contributing to the national security and the economic prosperity of Canada. “We are more client-service focused than we were in the past and, as a result, our credibility continues to improve,” says Mr. Deneault. He adds that anticipated streamlining of security clearances with other government departments and agencies will further make the work of ISS faster. Other changes include a database that the private sector will be able to access to check its own security clearances. Increased sharing of information with the private sector and getting the message out about ISS are also big priorities on its radar.

“A lot of the smaller companies don’t realize that if they don’t have the security clearance, they can’t bid on some contracts, not only nationally but internationally,” explains Mr. Deneault.

“We’ve got to make sure that industry understands that you don’t need to have a contract in order to get a security clearance from PWGSC, provided you have the proper sponsors. The Department will pre-screen you so that you may be in a competitive position to bid on sensitive contracts.”

In an era where national security is at the forefront of every country’s agenda, ISS is proving that when it’s done correctly, it can also be a boon for Canadian business and industry.

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