Transport Committee on May 11th, 2017

[The Chair (Hon. Judy A. Sgro (Humber River—Black Creek, Lib.)), Liberal, Judy Sgro]

I call the meeting to order. This is meeting number 58 of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 42nd Parliament. Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), we are continuing our study of aviation safety.

As witnesses today, we have, from the Department of Transport, Laureen Kinney, who we welcome back, Marie-France Paquet, and Mario Saucier; from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Joe Oliver, assistant commissioner, technical operations; from the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority, Neil Parry, vice-president, service delivery; from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Brian Rumig, assistant director, operations; and, from the Canadian Airports Council, Daniel-Robert Gooch and Jennifer Sullivan.

We welcome all of you. We offer our apologies for that delay of a few minutes, but one of our important staff is leaving Parliament Hill to take another job, and we wanted to make sure that he had a picture as a nice reminder of this great committee that he has helped to move along.

Thank you very much, Greg, on behalf of everyone.

Ms. Kinney, would you like to start?

[Laureen Kinney, Assistant Deputy Minister, Safety and Security, Department of Transport]

Thank you very much, Madam Chair and members of the committee.

I am the assistant deputy minister of safety and security at Transport Canada. It's a pleasure for me today to talk to you again about the department's role in protecting civil aviation from acts of unlawful interference and, in particular, about how our aviation security and transportation security clearance programs mitigate the risks related to persons working in restricted areas of Canadian airports.

Let me start by saying that aviation security is a key priority of Transport Canada. Our program's principal objective is to mitigate the risks related to acts of unlawful interference to the aviation system, which we do through a comprehensive set of policies, regulations, programs, and security measures that all work together to help protect air travel and trade.

For transportation security clearances in particular, I will give you an overview of the key components and the steps required for individuals working in restricted areas of airports in Canada.

Every individual who requires ongoing access to the restricted area of an airport must first obtain a transportation security clearance from Transport Canada. Before a clearance is granted, Transport Canada verifies that an individual does not pose a threat to the Canadian aviation system by completing background checks with CSIS, the RCMP, and, where applicable, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

As part of Transport Canada's ongoing vetting process, all transportation security clearance holders with access to the airport restricted areas are verified daily in a police database. When new criminal charges are identified, we take immediate action and can suspend or revoke the clearance of an individual. As part of our ongoing security protocols, more than 1,100 clearances were refused or cancelled at airports across the country between January 2015 and December 2016.

The restricted area identification card is a key component. Individuals working at airports who have been granted a clearance can then apply to obtain a restricted area identity card, or RAIC, which is issued by the airport operator. Simply possessing a RAIC is not sufficient for individuals to enter a restricted area. The RAIC must belong to the individual to whom it was issued. At most airports, this identity verification includes biometric validation, which ensures the person entering the area is the same person to whom the RAIC was granted.

Airport operators are responsible for maintaining effective access controls by ensuring that each person has a need and a right to enter that specific restricted area, and that persons enter only through the access points where CATSA screening is carried out. Employees awaiting their clearance and those who require infrequent access to an airport may be issued temporary passes. Every temporary pass holder is screened by CATSA prior to entering into the restricted area and is subject to escort requirements while in the restricted area. Transport Canada conducts regular inspections of RAIC and temporary pass requirements as part of a comprehensive review of procedures and practices with the airport operators.

Another key component is the screening of non-passengers—or workers at the airport. On top of a robust clearance process for people working in restricted areas of airports, those same employees are subject to physical screening requirements, both inside the terminal and when accessing critical areas near aircraft outside the terminal. These layers all work together to keep the system secure while ensuring that aircraft and passengers keep moving.

In conclusion, the continually evolving threat environment requires close collaboration between government, industry, and international partners. Maintaining open dialogue and information sharing can help address these challenges and strengthen the global civil aviation system.

Madam Chair, thank you for the committee's attention on this matter. I'm proud to have had the opportunity to highlight the excellent work performed every day to ensure that our country's air transportation system is safe and secure.

I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Oliver.

[Assistant Commissioner Joe Oliver, Assistant Commissioner, Technical Operations, Royal Canadian Mounted Police]

Madam Chair and members of the committee, thank you for the invitation.

My name is Joe Oliver, and I am the assistant commissioner responsible for the RCMP's technical operations directorate. I'm delighted to join my colleagues from Transport Canada and CSIS to speak to you today about the RCMP's role in supporting the transportation security clearance program.

RCMP services include the security intelligence background section, which is mandated to perform law enforcement record checks, or LERCs, for various government departments and agencies, including Transport Canada. Like security assessments done by CSIS, the LERC reports provide Transport Canada key elements in the identification of individuals who pose a risk to security.

In the context of your study of aviation safety, I would like to briefly elaborate on the services the RCMP provides in support of the transportation security clearance program, including a brief overview of the LERC process.

In response to the evolving threat environment as well as recommendations of various reports, the RCMP established the security intelligence background section to provide previously unavailable criminal information to Transport Canada to strengthen its decision-making on issuance of transportation security clearances.

In 2009, the RCMP and Transport Canada signed a memorandum of understanding that enabled enhanced information sharing with the goal of preventing individuals who pose a security threat from accessing restricted areas at listed airports.

The LERC process is initiated when Transport Canada sends a request to the RCMP for applicants who have provided their consent. The applicant's information is queried against numerous law enforcement databases. If the search results in adverse information, a more in-depth analysis is conducted to confirm the validity and relevance of the criminal information. At the conclusion of our investigation, a report is forwarded to Transport Canada containing available and relevant criminal information to assist with its clearance determinations. The LERC plays a critical role as it does not only confirm whether or not an applicant has any criminal records of involvement in criminal or terrorist activities, but it also does an assessment of their associations. For clarity, the RCMP does not make recommendations to Transport on whether or not a clearance should be granted, revoked, or suspended.

Between January of 2015 and December 2016, the RCMP received almost 84,000 requests from Transport Canada, nearly 48,000 new applications and 36,000 renewals. Of those requests that were processed, 1,258 resulted in LERC reports identifying adverse information.

Now that you have a better understanding of the LERC process and some of the volumes, let me take a moment to highlight a few challenges.

Because this is a civil process, the information shared with Transport Canada has to be shared in some cases with the applicants. The RCMP is limited in what criminal information is disclosed in the LERC due to the sensitivity of ongoing investigations, the protection of undercover operators and human sources, or sensitive investigational techniques.

This applies also when the adverse information in question belongs to another law enforcement agency. In such cases, permission must be granted by the originator to release information to a third party, which adds additional complexity and delays to the process.

Our repository of information constantly evolves, and as such, our internal processes are constantly adjusted to ensure we provide the most comprehensive information in support of the transportation security clearance program. We continue to pursue the goal of consistent access to data sources from all police agencies across Canada, and the RCMP identifies and implements mitigating measures on an ongoing basis to reduce potential risks.

In closing, the law enforcement records checks have assisted in strengthening security at the airport in an environment where threats are continually evolving. With the information contained in these reports, Transport Canada is better positioned to make informed decisions to mitigate risks, which increases the security of the aviation system and reduces opportunities for exploitation by criminals and terrorists.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much, Mr. Oliver.

Mr. Parry.

[Neil Parry, Vice-President, Service Delivery, Canadian Air Transport Security Authority]

Good morning, Madam Chair, and members of the committee.

My name is Neil Parry, vice-president, service delivery for the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority, CATSA.

As background, CATSA was established April 1, 2002. It is an agent crown corporation funded through parliamentary appropriations and accountable to Parliament through the Minister of Transport.

Responsibility for civil aviation security in Canada is shared among several federal departments and agencies, as well as air carriers and airport authorities. Specifically, CATSA is responsible for the effective and efficient screening of persons who access aircraft or restricted areas through screening points, the property in their possession or control, and the belongings or baggage that they give to an air carrier for transportation.

CATSA is regulated by Transport Canada, Canada's lead national civil aviation authority.

CATSA's mandate outlines its four core responsibilities within the realm of aviation security. We are responsible for pre-board screening, which is the screening of passengers; hold baggage screening, or checked baggage screening; non-passenger screening; and for managing the restricted area identity card program.

Given the nature of today's meeting, our focus on the screening of airport workers accessing secure areas of the airport, I'd like to comment quickly on two parts of that mandate—the restricted area identity card program and the non-passenger screening program.

As noted by my colleague from Transport Canada, in order to routinely access restricted areas of an airport, an individual must first attain the transportation security clearance that is managed and issued by Transport Canada. The authority that determines access privileges to the restricted area is the airport authority itself. CATSA manages the restricted area identity card program, which uses iris and fingerprint biometric platforms and identifiers to enable airports to validate that non-passenger's access privileges to the restricted areas of the airport.

Non-passenger screening refers to the screening of non-passengers accessing restricted areas at major airports. Non-passengers could include flight and cabin crews, airline customer service personnel, caterers, maintenance personnel, baggage handlers, and various other airport staff.

In budget 2014, CATSA received three-year funding to implement an enhanced non-passenger screening program to meet Transport Canada regulations that were in support of the International Civil Aviation Organization's standards.

In collaboration with airports, we have implemented enhanced non-passenger screening at access points within the main airport terminal buildings and vehicles accessing restricted areas around the commercial apron. They are now screened at Canada's busiest airports.

With that introduction I'm pleased to answer any questions the committee may have.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Rumig.

[Brian Rumig, Assistant Director, Operations, Canadian Security Intelligence Service]

Good morning, Madam Chair and committee members.

Thank you for the invitation to meet with you this morning. I'm very proud to be here this morning to represent the employees of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, men and women who remain dedicated to the protection of Canada's national security interests and the safety and prosperity of Canadians.

This morning I'd like to discuss our role in the security screening of individuals who work in sensitive areas at airports.

I'll keep my remarks brief and will focus on our role in supporting Transport Canada and its transportation security clearance program.

Before describing the CSIS role in supporting Transport Canada, I believe it is important to note two points.

First, the service's role is limited to providing security assessments. CSIS does not issue security clearances; it is Transport Canada's exclusive authority to grant, deny, revoke, or suspend a clearance of an individual.

Second, I would like to emphasize that CSIS is but one partner providing supporting information to Transport Canada, as is witnessed here by the expertise in front of you today.

Madam Chair, members of the committee may be most familiar with our mandate to investigate and advise the government on threats to the security of Canada. Those threats are defined in our legislation as espionage and sabotage, foreign-influenced activities, terrorism, and subversion through the use of violence.

In the context of your current study, however, our security screening program, also a core mandate of our organization, is perhaps most relevant. Under this responsibility CSIS may provide security assessments to a variety of government departments and agencies in support of their authority to issue clearances.

As identified by assistant deputy minister Kinney, under the transportation security clearance program every individual who requires access to an aircraft or to a restricted area of the airport must have a valid security clearance as granted by Transport Canada. CSIS supports this program upon request by conducting security assessments of individuals requiring access to these sensitive sites.

To provide you with a sense of volume, our security screening branch received just over 80,000 screening requests from Transport Canada in 2015 and 2016. When a request is received, preliminary checks are completed against the service's holdings to determine whether there is any adverse information on the individual.

Should adverse information be identified, a variety of investigative tools can then be leveraged by CSIS. Most often these include conducting an interview of the individual. Upon conclusion of CSIS's investigative activity, a written assessment is provided to Transport Canada.

As or when required, Transport Canada may also request that CSIS reopen a file of a cleared individual, should there be cause to do so. In addition to that, should we ourselves become aware of an individual who already holds a security clearance and whose activities are suspected of constituting a threat to the security of Canada, the service can initiate its own investigation and review the individual's clearance.

Madam Chair, CSIS recognizes the vital public safety considerations that exist in the nations' airports. I would like to emphasis that CSIS works closely with Transport Canada officials to ensure that they have information about potential serious national security concerns. In doing so, CSIS continues to meet its obligations to keep Canada and Canadians safe.

With that, Madam Chair, I will conclude my remarks and would welcome any comments and questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Gooch, please go ahead.

[Daniel-Robert Gooch, President, Canadian Airports Council]

Thank you.

Madam Chair and members of the committee, good morning. The safety and security of our passengers and workers is the number one priority of airports, which is why we thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today on a topic that is extremely important to airports. The screening of airport workers, or as we describe them in the industry and as you've seen today, non-passengers, has been a topic of significant discussion between industry and government in recent years as Transport Canada has taken steps to enhance the Canadian screening program.

My name is Daniel-Robert Gooch and I am the president of the Canadian Airports Council. Our 51 members represent more than 100 airports from coast to coast to coast including large global hubs like Toronto Pearson and Aéroports de Montréal to much smaller airports such as those in North Bay and Sydney. I am pleased to be joined today by Jennifer Sullivan, Toronto Pearson's director of corporate safety and security and the chair of the Canadian Airports Council security committee. Jennifer also serves as vice-chair of the Airports Council International world standing committee on security, so she can provide some perspective on the global context as well.

Canada's airports are managed and operated by local airport authorities on a not-for-profit basis. This means that any operating surpluses they deliver are reinvested into the airport, and any increases in operating costs are passed on to airport users, including travellers.

In Canada, the screening of passengers, baggage, and airport workers is of course the mandate of CATSA, a crown corporation. While the focus of today's session is on the screening of airport workers, we cannot tackle this topic effectively without discussing how CATSA is funded and approached overall.

While we have tremendous respect and support for the work that CATSA does, funding for CATSA is the single biggest operational challenge that airports face today. When the corporation was established in the aftermath of 9/11, government also created the air travellers security charge, a $7 to $25 levy applied to all airline tickets in Canada, and designed to cover the entire cost of the aviation security screening system, including the screening of airport workers. With the air travellers security charge, the government collects more than enough money to fund screening. In fact, in fiscal year 2015-16, the revenue from the ATSC was nearly $110 million more than what was provided to CATSA to fulfill its mandate. However, passengers are forced to stand in longer and longer lines waiting to be screened. But it's also not just passengers who are waiting in longer lines; airport workers are as well, and this has an impact on operational efficiency and raises costs for all of us.

Meanwhile, government has approached industry about potentially downloading the financial and operational responsibility for the screening of airport workers, their vehicles, and belongings at an estimated cost of $150 million a year. This is on top of more than $25 million a year in security costs that the government has quietly transferred to airports since 2009. In the interests of providing value to travellers and improving transparency, it is our opinion that ATSC revenues should be fully dedicated to covering CATSA's complete mandate, including the screening of airport workers. CATSA also needs greater flexibility to collaborate on and innovate how it runs a sustainable business. For example, with a couple of exceptions, CATSA has no ability to raise revenue from functions like training or supplemental services for airports. We see this as something that could be changed.

For the past two years, the CAC and our partners in the air carrier community have worked towards a permanent funding solution for CATSA, one that can address the organization's entire mandate. This is why airports were pleased with Transport Minister Marc Garneau's Transportation 2030 speech in Montreal last November, in which the minister made important commitments to address many of the items we've outlined above.

Unfortunately budget 2017 failed to make any progress on these commitments. Most relevant to our appearance today, however, is that budget 2017 delays a decision on how to handle and fund the screening of non-passengers, the workers at our airports. It is important that we get this work back on track.

In that context I will now turn it over to Jennifer for some specifics.

[Jennifer Sullivan, Director, Corporate Safety and Security, Greater Toronto Airports Authority, and Chair of the Security Committee, Canadian Airports Council]

Thank you, Daniel.

Madame Chair, honourable members, I echo Daniel's thanks to you for the opportunity to be here today.

The screening of airport workers, as mentioned, has been the focus of the CAC security committee in conjunction with Transport Canada and CATSA for several years. We work very closely with our colleagues at Transport Canada to mitigate the operational impacts while achieving the security outcomes of the enhanced non-passenger screening program that is implemented at airports across Canada. The changes to the program, which involved about $150 million in airport-funded infrastructure investments, keep Canada at pace with our international peers and in compliance with the requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization.

As a result of the non-passenger screening program enhancements, we have what we believe to be a robust system of screening. Through recurrent biographical screening via the transportation security clearance, biometric identity verification provided by the restricted area identity card, and airport access control systems, in conjunction with physical screening through CATSA checkpoints, we are verifying in real time that people accessing security-sensitive areas at the airport are who they say they are and, through screening, are determined not to be carrying prohibited items.

The enhanced program also provides Canada greater credibility with international partners. This has allowed Canada to enter into mutual recognition security agreements with our counterparts in Europe and the United States. This eliminates the duplication of security screening for some transiting passengers, which in turn allows airports to offer more convenient and faster connection processes for passengers in a globally competitive marketplace.

Though we have a strong system of regulations and practices, in the broader picture, we need all federal partners to contribute to its success. In particular, attention needs to be paid to the transportation security clearance process, the foundational security check for all employees at airports who have access to restricted areas.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

I'm sorry, Ms. Sullivan. Your time has been exceeded. Could you get in your remaining comments in response to a question? The committee has a lot of questions, and we always make sure we allocate as much time as possible for those questions.

Mr. Berthold, you have six minutes.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Thank you very much, Madam Chair.

I would like to thank all the witnesses for being here. We will certainly have a lot of questions for them.

Madam Chair, I would have liked to invite more people from the Montreal airport, given that the matter was first raised by the television station TVA in a report about the Montreal airport. Officials from the Montreal airport and the Montreal police were on my list of witnesses, but unfortunately they were not invited. I have accordingly put forward a motion. We will see how things play out and perhaps we will be able to invite those people. I might move my motion during the meeting, because I think it is important.

Concerns were raised in Montreal about the actions taken. There were media reports in Montreal about security clearances. The witnesses will no doubt be able to answer a number of my questions today.

My first questions are for Ms. Kinney. Transport Canada has a great many security screening requests from the various agencies. From the time a person requests a security clearance, how long does it take for the assessment to be completed and for the person to receive the clearance?

[Laureen Kinney]

Thank you for your question.

The elements of the process include the initial application through the airport, who controls the database, who is applying, and who is allowed to apply, because they're going to work at the airport. Then that application comes to Transport Canada. We go out through the RCMP for a fingerprint-based criminal record check and, as well, the background check in terms of the criminal intelligence activities Mr. Oliver mentioned. There's a security intelligence background section, so there is a set of inquiries at the RCMP. There's a CSIS check, which was mentioned by my other colleague, Mr. Rumig. We also have a Canadian citizenship and immigration check, depending on the background of the person.

When that information all comes back in, it's brought together, and it's assessed by Transport Canada. If something significantly adverse comes in at an earlier stage, we can obviously stop the process and make a decision at that point.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Ms. Kinney, I understand the process well since each person has explained their part.

How much time does it take for an employee to receive his...?

[Laureen Kinney]

The time is completely variable. It's a very individualized process. Some people can have it as quickly as a few days, I would think. If there is no adverse information responded back, the majority of people would have their security clearance in a little bit longer than a week or two. Can you give me a number, roughly?

[Marie-France Paquet, Director General, Intermodal Surface, Security and Emergency Preparedness, Safety and Security Group, Department of Transport]

Actually, it depends on the time it takes to do all the work at the RCMP, so it does take a bit longer than that.

[Laureen Kinney]

Do we have an estimate of the majority, roughly? Are we talking weeks or months?

[Marie-France Paquet]

Months.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Months?

[Laureen Kinney]

To finish checking for a name if there's no adverse—

[Marie-France Paquet]

For someone who is a first applicant, yes.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Ms. Sullivan, since you are the one who has to wait for the clearances, do you know how long it takes on average for an employee to receive their clearance?

[Jennifer Sullivan]

For a new applicant, on average we're seeing between three to five months.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Three to five months?