Today’s presentation will be a Hybrid meeting with online and in-person options.
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Canada’s Emergencies Act was passed in 1988 as a more restrictive replacement for the War Measures Act. It allows the federal government, by order in council, to claim abnormal powers. It has been used only once, in February 2022. Its use triggered a Public Order Emergency Commission, under Justice Paul Rouleau, which released its report on February 17.
1. Do you believe that the government’s declaration of emergency was appropriate for the situation?
2. More generally, what kind of situation does or does not justify a state of emergency? Do Canadian standards in this regard differ from other countries?
3. How much confidence do you have in Canadian governments (current or hypothetical) to use emergency powers wisely, fairly and appropriately?
4. What criticisms, if any, do you have about how any level of government responded to the Freedom Convoy?
5. Did Parliament in 1988 find the right balance between public order and civil liberties? If not, how should the law be changed?