National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians Act (S.C. 2017, c. 15)

Review Bodies

Marginal note:Provision of information to Committee

• 22 (1) Despite any provision of any other Act of Parliament — including section 45.47 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act — but subject to subsection (2), a review body may provide to the Committee information that is under its control and that is related to the fulfilment of the Committee’s mandate.

• Marginal note:Exceptions

  (2) The review body must not provide to the Committee

  • (a) information that is referred to in section 14; or

  • (b) information that is the subject of a decision that has been provided to the review body under subsection 16(3).

Marginal note:Provision of information to review bodies

23 The Committee may provide,

• (a) to the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, information that is obtained from — or that is created by the Committee from information obtained from — the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and that is related to the fulfilment of that review body’s mandate;

• (b) to the Commissioner of the Communications Security Establishment, information that is obtained from — or that is created by the Committee from information obtained from — the Communications Security Establishment and that is related to the fulfilment of that review body’s mandate; or

• (c) to the Security Intelligence Review Committee, information that is obtained from — or that is created by the Committee from information obtained from — the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and that is related to the fulfilment of that review body’s mandate.

Secretariat

Marginal note:Secretariat established

• 24 (1) The Secretariat of the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians is established.

• Marginal note:Role

  (2) The Secretariat is to assist the Committee in fulfilling its mandate.

• Marginal note:Office

  (3) The head office of the Secretariat is to be in the National Capital Region as described in the schedule to the National Capital Act.

Marginal note:Executive director

• 25 (1) There is to be an executive director of the Secretariat, who is to be appointed by the Governor in Council to hold office during pleasure for a term of up to five years. The executive director is eligible to be reappointed on the expiry of a first or subsequent term of office.

• Marginal note:Deputy head

  (2) The executive director has the rank and all the powers of a deputy head of a department.

Marginal note:Absence or incapacity

26 If the executive director is absent or incapacitated or the office of executive director is vacant, the Minister designated under section 3 may designate another person to act as executive director, but a person must not be so designated for more than 90 days without the Governor in Council’s approval.

Marginal note:Remuneration and expenses

• 27 (1) The executive director is to be paid the remuneration that is fixed by the Governor in Council and is entitled to be paid reasonable travel and living expenses incurred in the exercise of their powers or the performance of their duties or functions while absent from their ordinary place of work.

• Marginal note:Compensation

  (2) The executive director is deemed to be a person employed in the public service for the purposes of the Public Service Superannuation Act and to be employed in the federal public administration for the purposes of the Government Employees Compensation Act and any regulations made under section 9 of the Aeronautics Act.

Marginal note:Chief executive officer

28 The executive director is the chief executive officer of the Secretariat and has the control and management of the Secretariat and all matters connected with it.

Marginal note:Contracts, etc.

29 The executive director may enter into contracts, memoranda of understanding or other arrangements, including contracts to engage the services of legal counsel or other persons having professional, technical or specialized knowledge to advise or assist the Committee or any of its members.

Marginal note:Employees

30 The employees of the Secretariat are to be appointed in accordance with the Public Service Employment Act.

General Provisions

Marginal note:Final decision

• 31 (1) The appropriate Minister’s determination that a review referred to in paragraph 8(1)(b) would be injurious to national security or the appropriate Minister’s decision to refuse to provide information under subsection 16(1) is final.

• Marginal note:Committee’s response

  (2) If the Committee is dissatisfied with the determination or the decision, the Committee is not to bring the matter before the courts, but it may note its dissatisfaction in a report referred to in section 21.

Marginal note:Compliance of activity

31.1 The Committee must inform the appropriate Minister and the Attorney General of Canada of any activity that is carried out by a department and is related to national security or intelligence and that, in the Committee’s opinion, may not be in compliance with the law.

Marginal note:Expenses — appearance before Committee

32 Subject to the regulations, a person is entitled to be paid reasonable travel and living expenses incurred as a result of their appearance before the Committee.

Marginal note:Regulations

33 The Governor in Council may make regulations

• (a) respecting the procedures and practices for the secure handling, storage, transportation, transmission and destruction of information or documents provided to or created by the Committee;

• (b) respecting the procedure to be followed by the Committee in the exercise of any of its powers or the performance of any of its duties or functions;

• (c) respecting the expenses referred to in section 32; and

• (d) generally for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act.

Marginal note:Review of Act after five years

34 Five years after the day on which this Act comes into force, a comprehensive review of the provisions and operation of the Act is to be undertaken by the committee of the Senate, of the House of Commons or of both Houses of Parliament that is designated or established by the Senate or the House of Commons, or by both Houses of Parliament, as the case may be, for that purpose.

Consequential Amendments

R.S., c. A-1Access to Information Act

35 The Access to Information Act is amended by adding the following after section 16.5:

36 Schedule I to the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order under the heading “Other Government Institutions”:

R.S., c. F-11Financial Administration Act

37 Schedule I.1 to the Financial Administration Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order in column I, a reference to

and a corresponding reference in column II to “Leader of the Government in the House of Commons”.

38 Schedule IV to the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order :

39 Part III of Schedule VI to the Act is amended by adding, in alphabetical order in column I, a reference to

and a corresponding reference in column II to “Executive Director”.