Liberals blow past deadline to review major national security law
Bill C-59 changed Canada's national security landscape, creating the CSE Act, giving CSIS new powers and creating civilian oversight for the first time.
The Liberal government in Canada has missed its deadline by three years to review a significant national security law, Bill C-59, which was enacted in June 2019. This legislation greatly expanded the powers of Canada's security and intelligence agencies, including the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS).
The law also introduced civilian oversight of the intelligence community for the first time. However, the review has not taken place as required, despite the legislation mandating it within four years of its implementation in 2023. Documents obtained by Global News reveal that the chair of the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency (NSIRA) raised the missed deadline in a meeting with the Public Safety Minister in November 2025.
Yet, Anandasangaree's office stated it is Parliament's responsibility, and not theirs, to initiate the review. This delay has been attributed to a lack of national security interest across successive governments, with reviewers pointing to the crisis-driven approach of passing such legislation in the past. Critics argue that the current legal framework underpinning these agencies is outdated, having been established before the rapid advancements in technology such as artificial intelligence.
Without a comprehensive review, the government asserts, the operations of CSIS, CSE, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), along with their interactions with civilian oversight bodies, remain unexamined.
Written by urgent.news from Global News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
