QUESTION PERIOD — Public Safety
National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians
June 13, 2024
Senator Gold, given the disparity of treatment between the party leaders in the House of Commons and the leaders in the Senate, have you spoken directly to Minister LeBlanc to make the necessary arrangements for the group leaders in the Senate to read the same unredacted report of the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians, or NSICOP, that was read by Elizabeth May, the Leader of the Green Party? They only have two MPs, and they are not even a recognized party in the House of Commons. Will the same courtesy be extended to the Senate?
Thank you for your question. The opportunity to seek clearance to review the unredacted report has already been granted, as we know, to federal party leaders. However, access to an unredacted version of the report has been deliberately restricted to a very small number of individuals. I can confirm, for example, that I have not been offered access, nor have many cabinet ministers.
The government is engaged in a process of examining the issue of expanded access, notably for leaders and facilitators of recognized Senate groups and caucuses. I’m sure and I hope that we all understand that the question of access to unredacted documents of this nature is serious and extremely complex. A decision to grant access to classified information would not and should not be taken lightly by this government or any other government.
As Minister LeBlanc stated before the Standing Senate Committee on National Security, Defence and Veterans Affairs, he has been made aware of the issue and is working with me and my office to get the government to a well-reasoned decision point. Senators, please have confidence that when —
Thank you, Senator Gold.
Senator Gold, why is there such a double standard in the treatment of the two chambers? Leaders in the House of Commons have read or booked time to read the unredacted report, and in the Senate, nothing — no arrangements for any of them to read the report.
Can the leaders of the four groups in the Senate not be trusted like the leaders of the recognized groups — even Elizabeth May — in the House of Commons? Why the double standard?
Colleagues, it’s important to understand that the current approach of the government to the NSICOP report is consistent with the process that was taken with regard to earlier matters concerning foreign interference, notably the recommendations of the Independent Special Rapporteur, who recommended that the government work with the leaders of opposition parties in the House of Commons to obtain the requisite security clearances.
This is the process that was implemented with respect to his report and is now being implemented for the NSICOP report. I have raised it —
