Members of the parliamentary committee studying the February 2022 use of the Emergencies Act are voicing concerns about how long their review is taking.
The Special Joint Committee on the Declaration of Emergency met for over an hour on April 30, but much of the discussion from MPs and senators on the committee was on how to advance their work in a reasonable time.
Part of the problem is the large number of documents received by the committee that haven’t been translated into French.
Speaking through a French translator, Bloc MP Rheal Fortin said he was “quite disappointed” by the incomplete French translations and “the way we’re exercising bilingualism here,” suggesting “it’s okay to be bilingual, but if it’s going to cost us time or money, well, work it out.”
Conservative MP Larry Brock said after listening “very carefully to my colleague’s commentary” he was “dismayed that we are 11 months removed from the original request (for full French translations).”
Quebec Senator Claude Carignan questioned whether a proper report could be done without the needed French translations. “The devil is in the details,” he said through a French translator. “We have to have access to the documents.”
However, NDP MP Matthew Green said he was worried about the amount of time that waiting for translations would take. He urged a two-pronged approach of resuming work on a draft report while waiting for more documents to be translated into French.
“I think it’s irresponsible for us to pursue this committee in perpetuity,” he said, warning the committee’s work could easily stretch into 2025 if there are continued delays.
Ontario Senator Peter Harder picked up on the same theme, warning people could be “long asleep” by the time the report is released.
Mr. Brock agreed that working on a report while getting updated French translations is something the committee should be able to do.
In the end, the committee voted to reconvene on May 21, when it would on the report while getting an update on French translations.
Mr. Green downplayed expectations on how definitive the committee’s final report is likely to be whenever it is finished.
“I’m satisfied with the testimony that we got,” he said, adding he doesn’t expect the report to be unanimous and admitting that he’s working on his own supplementary document. “I don’t think anybody’s going to find consensus on this very sensitive topic,” he cautioned.
By law, the Public Order Emergency Commission was set up to review the invocation of the act. In February 2023, it found the government was justified in its action.
In January 2024, however, a federal court ruled that the government’s use of the act against the trucker protest was unreasonable and violated their Charter rights to freedom of expression and security against unreasonable searches. The case had been brought forward by protesters with the support of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, the Canadian Constitution Foundation, and others.
