The federal government will probe the use of the Emergencies Act during this winter’s trucker protests.
Paul S. Rouleau has been named as Commissioner of the Public Order Commission. Rouleau is a former judge.
His final report to the House of Commons and Senate must be provided by February 20th, 2023. The mandate of the Public Order Emergency Commission will be to investigate the circumstances around the use of the Act and the measures taken by police to deal with the Ottawa protest and border blockades.
Rouleau will work to establish the commission in the next few weeks. He says he is committed to a transparent process, “I am committed to ensuring that the process is as open and transparent as possible, recognizing the tight timelines for reporting imposed by the Emergencies Act.”
Invoking the Act allowed the police extraordinary powers to control and break up the protests and to freeze the bank accounts of the people involved.
When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act on February 14th it was the first time it had been used. He revoked its use on February 23rd after the crowds of protesters had been cleared.