Parliamentary Committee Notes: Intergovernmental Considerations for DEDC
PCO IGA Notes for your upcoming appearance at DEDC (Special Joint Committee on the Declaration of Emergency)
Issue
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Intergovernmental Considerations
- Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador, and British Columbia were supportive of the invocation of the Emergencies Act, while Quebec, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island were opposed.
- Both the POEC and Federal Court found the federal government consulted PTs as required by the EA and that the First Ministers’ Meeting held on February 14, 2022 satisfied the obligation to consult with the provinces before declaring public order emergency. The report on the consultations conducted with provinces during the invocation of EA is attached as Annex A.
- After the Federal Court issued its decision on invocation of EA, Alberta issued a statement welcoming the ruling, citing it as an example of the federal government’s unconstitutional practices, and made comparisons to recent decisions regarding plastics and the Impact Assessment Act. Alberta indicated that they are prepared to intervene in the appeal. No other PT governments have commented on the ruling.
- Half of the POEC recommendations have intergovernmental implications, emphasizing the need to strengthen collaboration among provincial, territorial, municipal, and Indigenous governments. The Government of Canada is committed to meaningful engagement based on an open and collaborative approach.
- PTs are looking to the federal government to show leadership in addressing the recommendations. Ontario, British Columbia, and Nova Scotia have already committed to develop initiatives in line with POEC recommendations on policing and major event management.
- Existing FPT tables on policing, public safety, justice, and transport will be leveraged where recommendations involve multiple jurisdictions. There have been already several discussions among Ministers, Deputy Ministers and officials on the POEC recommendations through mechanisms such as the Public Safety and Justice, and Transportation tables.
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