Backgrounder
This report is NSIRA’s third annual review of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service’s (CSIS) Threat Reduction Measures (TRMs). The review covers CSIS’s TRM activities between January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021. As mandated by the NSIRA Act, NSIRA is required to review at least one aspect of CSIS’s TRM performance each year. Before NSIRA was created in 2019, the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) reviewed CSIS’s TRM activities from 2016 to 2019.
In 2015, the Anti-Terrorism Act granted CSIS the authority to undertake TRMs. These are operational measures aimed at reducing threats to the security of Canada. TRMs may be taken in Canada or outside of Canada. TRMs are subject to limits outlined in the CSIS Act. The measures may limit a right or freedom guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Charter) or may otherwise be contrary to Canadian law if authorized by a warrant issued by a Federal Court judge. TRM powers differ greatly from CSIS’s traditional mandate to collect and disseminate intelligence and, as such, the use of TRMs demands thorough and ongoing independent scrutiny.
NSIRA’s review of CSIS’s TRM activities in 2021 builds upon findings from earlier NSIRA and SIRC TRM reviews. These previous reviews identified concerns such as the inclusion of some individuals in TRMs without a rational link to the identified threat and CSIS’s need to improve record-keeping regarding TRM outcomes. In 2021, NSIRA observed that the use of TRM powers by CSIS followed similar trends to prior years. Notably, 2021 was the first year that TRMs involving Ideologically Motivated Violent Extremism threats outnumbered those aimed at addressing Religiously Motivated Violent Extremism.
NSIRA found that CSIS met its obligations under the CSIS Actand the Charter. However, NSIRA found that improvements were needed in CSIS’s reporting procedures and made recommendations for improving legal risk assessments conducted for TRMs. Additionally, in one case, NSIRA identified that CSIS had not met its obligations under the 2015 Ministerial Direction for Operations and Accountability and the 2019 Ministerial Direction for Accountability issued by the Minister of Public Safety.
The findings and recommendations in this report highlight the importance of NSIRA’s independent scrutiny of TRM activities.
