Declaration of Emergency Committee on June 7th, 2022

Evidence of meeting #9 for Declaration of Emergency in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was laws.

A video is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

Review of the Exercise of Powers and the Performance of Duties and Functions Pursuant to the Declaration of Emergency that was in Effect from Monday, February 14, 2022, to Wednesday, February 23, 2022

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Joint Clerk of the Committee Mr. Paul Cardegna

François Daigle Deputy Minister of Justice and Deputy Attorney General of Canada, Department of Justice

Peter Harder Senator, Ontario, PSG

Joint Chair Hon. Gwen Boniface (Senator, Ontario, ISG)

Claude Carignan Senator, Quebec (Mille Isles), C

Larry W. Campbell Senator, British Columbia, CSG

Jenifer Aitken Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Central Agencies Portfolio, Department of Justice

Rob Stewart Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

The answer is no.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

Did you see orders like that coming from a police officer or another authority?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

No.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

If I understand correctly, you can't tell me under what order, what injunction or what legal provision the tow trucks decided, that morning, to tow the trucks.

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

I have only the testimony of the police.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

What did the police tell you?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

They confirmed that it was the case. The order gave them the power to...

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

Who ordered the tow trucks to tow the trucks?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

The Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police...

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

That's Ms. Lucki, if memory serves.

Was it Ms. Lucki who gave the order to the tow trucks to come and tow the trucks?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

No, but she knew that someone in the police had given the order.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

In your opinion, that couldn't have been done before the proclamation?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

No.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

Why?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

As I said, from what I know, the truckers refused to move their vehicles. It was impossible to...

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

If some truckers decided to come back to Ottawa tomorrow morning and block Wellington Street, and if there were more protests where there were children, we would then have to invoke the Emergencies Act. Do I understand correctly?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

No.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

What would be done differently?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

The first thing that would be done would be to prevent the protest.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

Why wasn't it prevented last February?

9:05 p.m.

Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Rob Stewart

Simply because it was not foreseen.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

It was foreseen; it was announced in advance.

Everyone knew that hundreds, even thousands of trucks were en route to Ottawa.

9:05 p.m.

NDP

The Joint Chair NDP Matthew Green

Thank you, Monsieur Fortin.

9:05 p.m.

Bloc

The Joint Chair Bloc Rhéal Fortin

Did you tell me that my speaking time was up?

9:05 p.m.

NDP

The Joint Chair NDP Matthew Green

Yes, and I will pass the chair on to you.

For my intervention, Mr. Chair, I'm happy to concede my time after I move the motion, of which the notice was put. I move:

That, in light of recent reports that numerous secret Orders in Council have been adopted, this committee demand the production of all secret Orders in Council adopted in relation to the convoy occupations and blockades across Canada, the invocation and/or revocation of the Emergency Measures Act, and that the documentation be provided to the committee within 30 days of the adoption of this motion.