Declaration of Emergency Committee on June 14th, 2022

[Claude Carignan]

In what way did the Emergencies Act facilitate the towing of the vehicles that were in Ottawa?

What additional power in the Emergencies Act or in the order made it possible for the law enforcement agencies to tow the vehicles?

Under the current legislation, a police officer may, without calling upon the Emergencies Act, require tow truck drivers to do their work. If a driver refuses, a criminal charge can be brought. The Criminal Code already gives officers the power to require that vehicles be towed.

What difference did the Emergencies Act make?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

Police services in every jurisdiction across the country have contracts with tow truck companies. They don't own the tow trucks themselves in the vast majority of jurisdictions. They have contracts. Part of those contracts is that those companies have the types of vehicles that are required to remove big tractor trailers.

Unfortunately, in every jurisdiction.... I'll share a letter that I have here—I brought copies of it—that I received from my ministerial counterpart in Alberta, Minister McIver. He said, I think very importantly, “Despite our best efforts to resolve this ongoing issue, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police...have exhausted all local and regional options to alleviate the week-long service disruptions at this important international border.” They were asking for help.

[Claude Carignan]

If you don't know whether the police, the law enforcement agencies, advised the use of the Emergencies Act, do you know who advised the government to do so?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

No. First of all, sir, the police did not advise me that the Emergencies Act should be used. The police were very clear about the challenges they faced.

[Claude Carignan]

I heard that. I got it.

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

Good, sir.

There were a number of discussions among colleagues. I will tell you that based on the conversations I had and what I learned about the challenges that law enforcement was having, I did not—

[Claude Carignan]

Was it you who had the idea of invoking the Emergencies Act?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

I'm sorry?

[Claude Carignan]

Was it you who had the idea of invoking the Emergencies Act?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

Quite frankly—and I will acknowledge to you that I wasn't suggesting that the Emergencies Act be invoked—I believed that it was necessary for us to examine all of the legal options that were available to us to determine whether or not the emergency that existed met the legal threshold. I thought that was an important thing to examine, as was looking at whether there were authorities that at the time were not available in any existing law in Canada to assist the police and whether those measures were available to us then.

Another important consideration was whether they would be effective in helping to bring about a peaceful resolution to this event.

[Claude Carignan]

Who suggested freezing the bank accounts?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

I have no recollection of that recommendation.

If I can make just a further point... It's an issue of semantics, but there was no recommendation that there should be a seizure.

[Claude Carignan]

[Inaudible--Editor]

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

No, it's an important clarification, if I may, sir, because the ability to freeze an account is—

[Claude Carignan]

Minister, if I froze your account for three days, perhaps you would say it was a seizure.

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

With great respect, sir, “seizure”, I think, is well articulated in both criminal and civil law in Canada with respect to forfeiture.

[Claude Carignan]

Yes.

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

That would account for a seizure. Freezing those assets—

[Claude Carignan]

I think the Supreme Court would disagree with you.

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

But respectfully, in law there's a very significant difference between freezing an asset and seizing an asset, and there are very different legal procedures. There are very important and complicated legal processes—

[Claude Carignan]

I won't contradict you on that. But I can certainly tell you that when a bank account is frozen, that constitutes a seizure, according to the Supreme Court.

[The Joint Chair, Hon. Gwen Boniface]

Senator Carignan, your time is up. Thank you.

Senator Harder.

[Peter Harder]

Thank you very much, Chair.

Thank you, Minister, for being here.

Minister, I just want to thank you for your candour not only tonight but throughout the event as well. I note, for example, that early in the process of observing the occupation, you said that the police needed to do their job. Tonight you acknowledged that law enforcement was unable to bring a peaceful resolution to this.

That observation we enjoyed here in Ottawa for several days. Why did it take so long for the government to form a view that action had to be taken?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

First of all, we believed action had to be taken, but we also believed it was the responsibility of the police of jurisdiction. Frankly, I, as you can imagine, have great respect for the institution of policing and the delineation of responsibilities in Canadian law.

So we gave every opportunity and offered every support and resource to try to assist the police in bringing about that effective resolution, but they made it very clear that they were not successful and could not be successful without help.

They didn't tell us how to deliver that help, but they told us the problems they were having.

[Peter Harder]

When the Ontario government developed their emergency order, did they consult with you as to what that order should include?