National Defence Committee on April 3rd, 2014

[John Forster]

That's correct. Our focus, as required under the act, is foreign intelligence and foreign targets to support the intelligence priorities of the government. We're not listening to Canadian conversations with your family and so on. We collect, as I mentioned, information off the Internet but we use it to identify and attract legitimate foreign targets.

[Rick Norlock, Conservative, Northumberland—Quinte West, ON]

So tell me how Canadians can be assured that you are doing your job, that you're not interfering with private communications. By that I'm asking if you feel you have to do something, do you run it by, for instance, a judge? Do you make sure that anything you have to do, that if you have to go somewhere or do something...? What are the checks and balances to make sure that Canadians can trust that you're doing your job?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

If I might just get in on that and then I'll turn it back to Mr. Forster....

Again, as I pointed out in my initial comments, we have a retired or supernumerary judge who has a look at these. I can tell you that he has done at least six reviews of CSE with respect to whether it's metadata collection, to ensure their compliance with Canadian laws. They are under close scrutiny by the CSE commissioner and those working with him to ensure that they are in compliance with all Canadian laws and that they respect and protect the privacy of Canadians.

I don't know if you had any further comments, Mr. Forster. That is the check that's in place, Mr. Chair.

[Rick Norlock, Conservative, Northumberland—Quinte West, ON]

I'm trying to encapsulate this into one little piece of information for Canadians. The piece of information is that you don't target Canadians or Canadian businesses or Canadian entities and if you come across information that some cyber-attack may be targeting a civilian company, a company other than the Government of Canada, that you go to Public Safety and tell them to begin to take action in that regard.

And if it is to deal with the Government of Canada, the military, whom do you contact or notify?

[John Forster]

In terms of government networks and systems we will look at attacks coming into the government networks. We work with Shared Services Canada then who are providing the basic computer network and services for Canada. We will provide notices and alerts to Shared Services Canada. We will help mitigate those attacks. We will help clean up where there's been need to go in and modify or correct actions that have been taken. We work with government departments on that.

As I mentioned earlier, in terms of military operations we provide direct support to military operations like Afghanistan.

[The Chair, Conservative, Peter Kent]

Thank you.

Ms. Murray, please, for seven minutes.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Thank you.

Thank you, Minister Nicholson, for being here to discuss these important issues with the committee members.

To your officials, I want to thank you for reversing the decision on paying for the expenses of families to come to the May 9 commemoration service.

I do have a couple of questions, though, on that because a letter went out last month to all 158 families. You described it as a mistake but clearly this was a plan. Did anyone in your office know about this plan?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Certainly it was not planned by me or my office. We've been very consistent with this. The information to be sent out to these people was one of a save the date, making sure that they had this and the inclusion of a line with respect to them having to pay their own way had absolutely nothing to do with my office and our government position on this hasn't changed as a matter of fact.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Thank you.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

We will support those and assist those who have suffered these huge losses.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Did anyone in your office approve the preliminary plan to hold these commemorations?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Again, this was never the government's policy.

Again, I hope I made it clear in my opening comments that we can and will support those individuals.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

In the letter it said, “Your attendance will be at your own expense”. There were family members who experienced that as being like a slap in the face. Have you or your department apologized to the families for this letter of last month?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

It just came to our attention last night. This is part of what we're doing here, to make it clear that's not the government's position, that we will support those individuals, that this is a mistake that was sent out.

Again, it was a question of saving the date, you want people to know, but there will be a considerable, as we pointed out and announced a couple of weeks ago, commemoration as is appropriate.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Minister.

I have one last question on that. If that was not your plan or the government's plan, what is planned to be covered? How many family members? What kind of expenses will be covered? Is it hotel, is it travel costs and per diems? Could you share the plan?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Again, at this point in time we're in the planning process and the first step of the planning process was to make the announcement that in fact we would honour Canada's role in Afghanistan and those who played this important role.

Again, it's an evolutionary exercise and we'll get the message out.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

It's a month away but those details, you aren't able to share them.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

We're working on them as we speak, and as I say, getting the message out to save the date was one part of that.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Thank you.

On another matter, and this has to do with budget and figures, so this may be in the supplementary estimates but it's at a level of detail that it's not clear if it is in those transfers. An inquiry of the ministry that I've put forward, dated January 29 of this year, elicited the information that the department will be required to pay for commemoration activities for the next six years to the tune of $27.5 million. That was the total that your department sent back to me.

Is that $27.5 million for incremental costs associated with Operation Distinction for the years until 2020, a correct total?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Again, without seeing the letter that you have there, this is part of our commemoration of a number of important military moments that we are going to commemorate. We made that very clear, that this is important for us, among other things to, as I say, recognize those who have served in Afghanistan and those who have paid the ultimate price. But, as you know, in addition there are a number of anniversaries that are coming forward with respect to World War I—

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

So it may be higher number?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

—and World War II, and, again, it's all part of this.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

So it may be higher?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Again, we're working through this. We're working with other departments, it's not just national defence. Heritage will play an important role in this—

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Okay, thank you.