Summary Report – Cross-Cultural Roundtable on Security Meeting – June 14, 2024
The Cross-Cultural Roundtable on Security (CCRS) met virtually on Friday June 14, 2024 from 1 to 4:00 pm EDT. Members and senior government officials discussed matters related to foreign interference, online harms and advancing a civilian emergency response capacity in Canada.
The meeting commenced with welcoming remarks from the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada (via video) and from the Deputy Minister of Public Safety Canada. Both Minister Virani and Deputy Minister Tupper emphasized the importance of the CCRS – and members’ input on matters related to national security and community safety. They expressed their gratitude to members for giving their valuable time and perspectives to help shape federal government policy, legislation and programs.
Foreign Interference
The first third of the meeting was dedicated to a discussion on Foreign Interference. Officials from Public Safety, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and Justice Canada provided an overview of the recently tabled Bill C-70: An Act Respecting Countering Foreign Interference, followed by a discussion with members related to various aspects of the Act.
Members were particularly interested in discussing changes to the Security of Information Act and the creation of a Foreign Influence Transparency Registry under the Foreign Influence Transparency and Accountability Act. They flagged the importance of striking a balance between transparency, freedom of expression and legislating online content. Members asked about how the Registry would work, including how foreign entities would be required to register and how members of the public would know what information was registered and what was not, especially related to social media content.
Officials explained that a new Foreign Influence Transparency Commissioner will administer the Act and will be responsible for establishing guidance to address the valid and important points raised by members. They indicated that the Commissioner will consult on the development of guidance and be free to investigate what they deem necessary. Officials also emphasized that Bill C-70 introduces new tools to tackle Foreign Interference, but it is not the sole solution. Other legislation is being amended as well – as this is an extremely complex issue.
Online Harms
Next, officials from Canadian Heritage, Public Safety and Justice Canada provided members with an update on Bill-63, the Online Harms Act, and public feedback received since its tabling in February, 2024. Officials provided an update on proposed criminal code amendments and an overview of the proposed digital safety commission and incident response protocol.
Members shared their views on the definitions of ‘violent extremist and terrorist content’ and cited examples of community members being hurt via online humiliation and not having a legal mechanism to protect themselves. They asked how humiliation would be considered as part of the proposed legislation even though it is not defined as a hate crime. Officials explained that they relied on the Supreme Court of Canada definition, so they were limited but also acknowledged the importance of taking this into consideration as they moved forward.
Members asked how artificial intelligence (AI) and bots would be captured when targeting authors of hate speech. Officials explained how this is captured – as the person setting up the bot or AI would be responsible for the content they share. Members also wanted to learn more about the enforcement of the Act and also wondered why social media platforms would not be responsible for proactively seeking out harmful content, rather than placing the burden on the individual to find the material and report it. Officials explained complexities of striking a balance between protecting the public without unduly invading privacy. They committed to continue to look for alternate solutions to this complicated issue.
Advancing the dialogue on a Pan-Canadian Civilian Response Model
The meeting concluded with a discussion on Public Safety’s work to advance a civilian response capacity in Canada. Public Safety looked to members for input on current capacities, gaps and limitations within the emergency response system and hoped to gather input on how to leverage these capacities through a future all-hazards pan-Canadian civilian response capacity.
There was a shared recognition that our current system needs to be more proactive with increased collaboration between jurisdictions. There was also agreement that currently there is a lack of scalable capacity and that we need to think differently on how different capacities can come together to have better surge capacity.
Members flagged the importance of engaging under-represented groups and suggested working with libraries, post offices and religious groups as outlets for sharing materials and information – especially in small communities. Members also emphasized the importance of developing and communicating clear procedures and roles and responsibilities, as many communities are experiencing climate related emergencies for the first time and do not know what to do. They explained that many community members want to help and that training and utilizing community members as part of the response effort could help with capacity issues.
Public Safety officials agreed that we need to be ready for different kinds of events and that we need to create resources across the country that can be fluid and flexible and that training is a key component of this. We also need to support community resilience during their recovery efforts. Officials explained the complexity of jurisdictional response – as our current emergency response structure in Canada starts at the community level and expands to provincial and federal as needed – however when a disaster occurs, Canadians look to the Federal Government to intervene and respond.
Next Steps
The next meeting of the Cross Cultural Roundtable on Security will be in November, 2024 in Regina, Saskatchewan.
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