WINNIPEG – The Trudeau government will deliver soon on its promise to set up a parliamentary oversight committee for Canada’s national security agencies.
And it will follow that with a public review of anti-terrorism legislation.
Government House Leader Dominic LeBlanc says legislation to create the committee will be introduced before Parliament breaks for the summer and he hopes it will pass quickly in the fall.
He says the committee will include MPs and senators from both the governing and opposition parties.
He says it will look at the operations of 19 different agencies that have responsibility for national security, including the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and the secretive Communications Security Establishment.
LeBlanc says Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale will also soon begin a public review of anti-terrorism legislation passed by the previous Conservative government.
The Liberals supported that legislation, but said they would repeal some controversial provisions to ensure a better balance between security and individual civil liberties.
Among other things, the Liberals promised to narrow the definition of terrorist propaganda and ensure that lawful protest and advocacy could not be considered terrorism.
