Good evening, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
My name is Michael Duheme. I am the deputy commissioner for federal policing.
With me, I have assistant commissioner Mark Flynn, who is the executive director for national security, as well as protective policing, for the RCMP.
We appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today to answer questions about IMVE, along with our federal colleagues who are also impacted by this highly concerning issue.
The IMVE threat environment is rapidly evolving and complex, and it requires close collaboration among security and intelligence partners at all levels, both nationally and internationally. From a law enforcement perspective, hate-motivated violent incidents and criminal threats related to IMVE are increasing in frequency across the country. The most common threat actors we see are individuals with no clear group affiliation, who are motivated by highly personalized and nuanced ideologies that lead individuals to incite and/or mobilize to violence.
Perhaps most importantly, the RCMP is seeing a rampant growth in hateful and IMVE content online. We are gravely concerned with the extremist views that are first fostered online, which can lead to actual physical violence—and have. The RCMP has seen several examples of this evolution, although I can’t provide details in this open forum, as several of these investigations are either ongoing or currently proceeding through the courts.
The increasingly individualized and leaderless nature of this threat environment, combined with the amplifying effect of the online space, carries detection and other challenges that are driving a shift in the RCMP’s national security priorities. With this in mind, we are re-evaluating elements of our current counterterrorism posture, our strategies for countering IMVE threats and our resource capacity requirements. The RCMP takes its preventive mandate very seriously, and the key to prevention is timely information and intervention before it’s too late.
The nature of the IMVE threat also raises jurisdictional and mandate considerations that enhance the need for coordination and information sharing between domestic law enforcement partners and the security and intelligence community.
The RCMP’s federal policing national security program is mandated to investigate IMVE-related criminal activity that rises to the level of a national security threat as defined in the CSIS Act. As such, we maintain close partnerships with CSIS and other domestic security and intelligence agencies and engage in tactical information sharing with foreign partners to counter IMVE threats.
On the other hand, police of jurisdiction have primary responsibility to investigate hate-motivated criminal activity. These jurisdictional realities highlight the importance of law enforcement coordination at all levels to combat this evolving threat and the value of intelligence-led policing.
Since there is often overlap between hate-motivated crimes and IMVE-related criminality, the RCMP works closely with police of jurisdiction to identify criminal threats of national security interest and conduct coordinated investigations. We are also working internally to develop uniform guidelines and indicators for assessing when a particular threat or criminal activity falls within the national security mandate of the RCMP.
In terms of criminal investigations, the RCMP’s foremost priority is protecting the safety and security of Canadians. It is also important to note that minority Canadians are disproportionately the victims—and not the perpetrators—of hate-motivated and IMVE-related violence. It is incumbent upon the security and intelligence community to use every tool at our disposal to protect these communities against violent acts.
The RCMP has a robust mandate to prevent criminal activity, and we can pursue various investigative avenues to mitigate potential threats to public safety or national security when they are brought to our attention. Where criminal charges are applicable, the RCMP works together with Crown prosecutors, including the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, to carefully consider which offences have the best chance of successful prosecution.
On that note, I thank you. I'm hoping that my presence and that of Mark Flynn can help you clarify the situation with regard to IMVE.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.