Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'll try to do it in a minute minus.
Mr. Chair, the way this bill defines “human source” could have some negative effects on the ability of law enforcement or the courts to investigate and prosecute terrorists.
Obviously, CSIS needs to be able to promise some sources confidentiality, but the courts have found several times that this promise can be implicit. If we are not explicit here, this could handcuff our ability to actually convict terrorists.
You may recall that in committee Professor Kent Roach spoke to and testified that “language should at least be limited so that it is only an explicit promise made by CSIS of anonymity that would trigger this broad privilege”.
The wish here is that we clarify this potential ambiguity by adding the words “explicit written promise”.