Justice committee  At this point, it is almost complete. Certainly the change in government, the transition in the department, and so forth has had an impact on the timing of it and getting it out, but it is coming forward soon.

Justice committee  To my knowledge, at this point, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans has used it and Environment Canada is currently examining the possibility of following suit, but I personally haven't seen any annual reports from them. I'm not sure where the report is on that.

Justice committee  The ones that are public refer to those that were not designated initially by the minister. There were exigent circumstances requiring a rapid designation. The senior officer—in this case, Assistant Commissioner Souccar—may designate someone for up to 48 hours, so they can proceed with their operations.

Justice committee  It is the common application. The annual reports don't speak to the number of applications or number of designations per se, because there's a need to maintain officer security. As was requested when the act was adopted, we are simply reporting about emergencies or extraordinary circumstances, so that we can ensure that there is no abuse of the provisions.

Justice committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. First of all, it's a pleasure to be here this afternoon. I'll take a few minutes, but no more than ten minutes, I promise, to cover the role of the department and the minister with respect to the designation protocol and reporting requirements as they relate to the law enforcement justification provisions.