Alberta advises Trudeau to review POEC report, says Ottawa 'unnecessarily invoked' the Emergencies Act

The Canadian Press / Chris Young

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Alberta's Justice Minister said the UCP intends to review the Public Order Emergency Commission (POEC) report and advised that Ottawa should do the same.

"Alberta's government maintains the federal government's consultation with provinces was inadequate and that unnecessarily invoking the Emergencies Act set a dangerous precedent," said Shandro.

"The decision to invoke the act violated the constitutionally guaranteed rights of Albertans and gave the federal government the ability to seize property without due process of law."

On Friday, POEC Commissioner Paul Rouleau determined that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met the "very high threshold" for invoking the Emergencies Act to remove the Freedom Convoy protesters from Ottawa.

Rouleau described the protest as having "descended into lawlessness, culminating in a national emergency." But, he admitted that its use is "regrettable" owing to several policing failures in their response to the Convoy that "spun out of control."

In the report, Rouleau summarized the Freedom Convoy — formed in response to cross-border vaccine mandates for truck drivers — as a movement rooted in a "loss of faith in government" and "economic hardship" caused by the government's COVID government response.

Rouleau admitted that most of the Freedom Convoy consisted of "peaceful demonstrations" and criticized the feds for not adequately preparing for the Freedom Convoy to avoid the measures taken under the Emergencies Act.

"It is only in rare instances when the state cannot otherwise fulfill its fundamental obligation to ensure the safety and security of people and property that resort to emergency measures will be found appropriate," said Rouleau in the executive summary of his report.

"[It is not a] tool of convenience, [but a] tool of last resort."

Shandro referenced the report's 56 recommendations to highlight the issues with how his federal counterparts employed the Emergencies Act, particularly the lack of consultations with the provinces.

"One thing is clear: the federal government must involve provinces and territories in decision-making for future emergencies," said the justice minister. 

"My department will review the report and its recommendations, and I call on the federal government to do the same."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday his government would look to have an action plan in place in the coming months to "seriously consider" the recommendations of the POEC report.

Shandro added that he believes matters like infrastructure, policing and the economy have provincial impacts and "Alberta must have a seat at the table when decisions are being made that affect the province and its people."

Trudeau also admitted that the feds could have also been better partners with the provinces.

"Throughout the process, we saw that there were times when the provinces could have done things differently and could have cooperated better with the federal government," said Trudeau.

Shandro concluded his remarks by stating he would "continue to be a voice for Alberta's priorities, interests and concerns and to protect Albertans' freedoms from federal government intrusions."