Liberals’ promise to review Bill C-59 now three years overdue
In 2019, the review was stressed with so much importance that its requirement was written into the legislation itself.
The Liberals have failed to meet their own deadline to review a major national security law that gave security and intelligence agencies such as CSIS sweeping new powers, including citizen review and oversight.
While the Trudeau government initially pledged to review Bill C-59 within four years of its implementation in 2019 when the Communications Security Establishment Act was first implemented, it never happened.
The legislation marked an overhaul in Canada’s national security landscape, which prompted the Liberals to include a mandatory review of the new national security regime by Parliament before 2023.
At the time, the review was stressed with so much importance that its requirement was written into the legislation itself.
Documents obtained by Global News show the chair of the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency addressed the problem of the lapsed timeline with Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree last fall.
