Canada announces new measures to better ensure the security of its citizens

Toronto: Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced a number of measures that will increase the safety and security of Canadians. He was joined by Joe Oliver, Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for Eglinton-Lawrence.

Our Government knows that the highest calling of any government is to ensure the safety and security of its citizens. To this end, the Prime Minister announced new support, under Economic Action Plan 2015, for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) to increase the agency’s front-line capacity to combat the ever-evolving threat of terrorism. This funding will help support CSIS’ counter-terrorism capabilities to better identify and address threats from terrorists planning acts on Canadian soil or from would-be terrorists trying to travel abroad to commit such acts elsewhere.

Prime Minister Harper also announced that the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will strengthen their resources currently allocated to countering terrorist threats in order to better crack down on the financing of terrorist groups through registered charities in Canada. It will build on current efforts to detect and suppress terrorist financing activities in the charitable sector, to help legitimate charities better protect themselves against terrorist abuse, and to ensure that the generous donations of hard-working Canadians are not being funneled to dangerous terrorist organizations.

Finally, the Prime Minister Harper announced significant support over a five-year period to expand biometric screening measures to all foreign travellers entering Canada on a visa. These important measures will give Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officials the tools they need to verify the identity of travellers and further improve the security and integrity of our borders.