Public Complaints and Review Commission Act (S.C. 2024, c. 25)

Marginal note:Safeguards — third party

• 24 (1) The Commission must not disclose information referred to in subsection 16(4) that it has received from the RCMP or Agency to any person or entity other than a member, employee or officer of the Commission or a person acting on its behalf unless the Chairperson is satisfied that

  • (a) the person or entity will take reasonable measures to protect that information;

  • (b) the person or entity will require all of its members, employees, officers and other persons acting on its behalf to meet requirements that are equivalent to the requirements referred to in section 23; and

  • (c) the person or entity has agreed to any measures that would assist the Commission to verify compliance with the obligations described in paragraphs (a) and (b), which may include agreeing to permit the Commission to enter and inspect the premises of the person or entity and any information storage facilities and to provide any information or documents requested by the Commission.

• Marginal note:Duties to comply

  (2) Every person who has received information under this section must comply with the regulations made under paragraph 87(b).

Marginal note:Disclosure by Commission prohibited

• 25 (1) Except as authorized under subsection (2), a member, officer or employee of the Commission and any other person acting on its behalf must not provide information to any person, or allow any person to have access to information, knowing that the information is privileged information to which they had access under subsection 17(2) or being reckless as to whether the information is such information.

• Marginal note:Authorized disclosure

  (2) Every person who is otherwise prohibited under subsection (1) from disclosing privileged information may, if authorized by the Chairperson, disclose that information

  • (a) to the Attorney General of Canada or of a province if, in the opinion of the Chairperson, the information relates to the commission of an offence under federal or provincial law by a director, an officer or an employee of a government institution and there is evidence of such an offence and the information is required in criminal proceedings, either by indictment or on summary conviction, that have been commenced by the laying of an information or the preferring of an indictment, under an Act of Parliament;

  • (b) to the Minister other than in an annual report referred to in section 13;

  • (c) to the Commissioner if, in the opinion of the Chairperson, the information is required for the purpose of enabling the Commissioner to exercise his or her powers or perform his or her duties and functions under the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act; and

  • (d) to the President if, in the opinion of the Chairperson, the information is required for the purpose of enabling the President to exercise his or her powers or perform his or her duties and functions under the Canada Border Services Agency Act.

• Marginal note:Disclosure of privileged information — proceedings

  (3) A member, officer or employee of the Commission or other person acting on its behalf must not be required, in connection with any criminal, civil or administrative action or proceeding, to give or produce evidence relating to privileged information to which he or she had access under subsection 17(2).

• Marginal note:Application

  (4) Except as provided by any other Act of Parliament that expressly refers to it, this section applies despite any other Act of Parliament other than the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act.

• Marginal note:Application

  (5) This section applies despite subsection 13(1) of the Auditor General Act and subsection 79.4(1) of the Parliament of Canada Act.

Marginal note:Use of information

• 26 (1) Despite any provision in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act or the Canada Border Services Agency Act, but subject to subsection (2), a member, officer or employee of the Commission, with the Chairperson’s approval, may, in the exercise of their powers or the performance of their duties and functions under this Act,

  • (a) use information obtained by the Commission under this Act relating to a complaint if

    • (i) the information relates to a particular event or series of events that involved one or more RCMP employees and one or more CBSA employees,

    • (ii) the information is relevant and necessary to deal with a complaint made under section 33 or 36 that relates to the event or series of events or to initiate a complaint under section 36 that relates to the event or series of events, and

    • (iii) the information is used solely for the purpose of dealing with the complaint or initiating the complaint; and

  • (b) use information obtained by the Commission under a review conducted under subsection 28(1) or (2) or section 29 of any activity that was, is or may be carried out by the RCMP or Agency if

    • (i) the information is relevant and necessary to the conduct of a review under subsection 28(1) or (2) or section 29 of any similar activity that was, is or may be carried out by the RCMP or Agency, and

    • (ii) the information is used solely for the purposes of the review referred to in subparagraph (i).

• Marginal note:Opportunity to make representations

  (2) If the information is privileged information that was obtained from the RCMP or Agency, a member, officer or employee of the Commission and any person acting on its behalf must not use the information without having first given the Commissioner or President, as the case may be, an opportunity to make representations.

Marginal note:Disclosure prohibited

27 A current or former member, officer or employee of the Commission, or any person who is acting or has acted on the Commission’s behalf, may disclose information that they obtained or to which they had access in the course of exercising their powers or performing their duties and functions under this Act only for the purpose of exercising their powers or performing their duties and functions under this Act or as authorized or required by any other law.

Review of Specified Activities

Marginal note:Review and report

• 28 (1) For the purpose of ensuring that the activities of the RCMP are carried out in accordance with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act or the Witness Protection Program Act, any regulations or ministerial directions made under them or any policy, procedure or guideline relating to the operation of the RCMP, the Commission may, on the request of the Minister or a third party or on its own initiative, conduct a review of specified activities of the RCMP and provide a report to the Minister and the Commissioner on the review.

• Marginal note:Review and report

  (2) For the purpose of ensuring that the activities of the Agency are carried out in accordance with the Canada Border Services Agency Act, any ministerial directions made under that Act and any policy, procedure or guideline relating to the operation of the Agency, the Commission may, on the request of the Minister or a third party or on its own initiative, conduct a review of specified activities of the Agency and provide a report to the Minister and the President on the review.

• Marginal note:Condition

  (3) In order to conduct a review on its own initiative, the Commission must be satisfied that no other review or inquiry has been undertaken on substantially the same issue by a federal or provincial entity.

• Marginal note:Notice

  (4) Before conducting a review on its own initiative, the Commission must give a notice to the Minister indicating that the Commission is satisfied that the condition referred to in subsection (3) has been met and setting out the rationale for conducting the review.

• Marginal note:Policies, procedures and guidelines

  (5) The Commission must include in the report any findings and recommendations that it sees fit regarding the adequacy, appropriateness, sufficiency or clarity of any policy, procedure or guideline relating to the operation of the RCMP or Agency, as the case may be.

• Marginal note:Copy of report to provincial ministers

  (6) The Commission may provide a copy of the report made under subsection (1) to the provincial minister who has the primary responsibility for policing in any province in respect of which there is an arrangement between the government of the province and the Minister under section 20 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act.

• Marginal note:Summary of report

  (7) The Commission must make public a summary of every report.

• Marginal note:Opportunity to make comments

  (8) Before making the summary public, the Commission must give the Commissioner or President, as the case may be, an opportunity to submit comments on the findings and recommendations included in the report within 60 days after the day on which the report is received by him or her or any longer period that the Minister considers appropriate. The Commission must make public any comments that the Commissioner or President submits at the same time as it makes the summary public.

Marginal note:Review for province

• 29 (1) If there is an arrangement between the government of a province and the Minister under section 20 of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, the provincial minister who has the primary responsibility for policing in that province may ask the Minister to request that the Commission conduct a review of specified activities of the RCMP in that province.

• Marginal note:Report

  (2) If the Commission conducts a review under this section, it must provide the Minister, the provincial minister who asked for the review and the Commissioner with a report on the review. The Commission may provide a copy of the report to any other provincial minister who has the primary responsibility for policing in a province.

• Marginal note:Findings and recommendations

  (3) The Commission must include in its report any findings and recommendations that the Commission sees fit regarding

  • (a) whether the activities of the RCMP are carried out in accordance with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act or the Witness Protection Program Act, any regulations or ministerial directions made under them or any policy, procedure or guideline relating to the operation of the RCMP; and

  • (b) the adequacy, appropriateness, sufficiency or clarity of any policy, procedure or guideline relating to the operation of the RCMP.

Marginal note:Joint reviews

30 If a review conducted under subsection 28(2) concerns the detention of persons on behalf of the Agency under an agreement or arrangement referred to in subsection 13(3) of the Canada Border Services Agency Act, the Commission may conduct that review jointly with any competent authority in the province where the persons are or were detained.

Marginal note:National security

• 31 (1) The Commission does not have jurisdiction to conduct a review of an activity that is related to national security.

• Marginal note:Referral

  (2) The Commission must refer any matter related to national security arising from a request for a review under subsection 28(1) or (2) or section 29 to the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency.

Marginal note:Powers

• 32 (1) The Commission has, when conducting a review under subsection 28(1) or (2) or section 29, all of its powers under subsection 50(1).

• Marginal note:Application

  (2) Subsections 50(2) to (6) apply, with any necessary modifications, to the exercise of the powers by the Commission under subsection (1).

PART 2Investigation, Review and Hearing of Complaints

Complaints

Marginal note:Complaints

• 33 (1) Any individual or third party may make a complaint concerning the conduct, in the performance of any duty or function under the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act or the Witness Protection Program Act, of any person who, at the time that the conduct is alleged to have occurred, was an RCMP employee.

• Marginal note:Complaints

  (2) Any individual or third party may make a complaint concerning the conduct, in the exercise of any power of the Agency or the performance of any of its duties or functions under the Canada Border Services Agency Act, of any person who, at the time that the conduct is alleged to have occurred, was a CBSA employee.

• Marginal note:Time limit

  (3) The complaint must be made within two years after the day on which the conduct is alleged to have occurred or any longer period permitted under subsection (4) or (5).

• Marginal note:Extension of time limit — subsection (1)

  (4) The Commission or the Commissioner may extend the time limit for making a complaint under subsection (1) if the Commission or the Commissioner, as the case may be, is of the opinion that there are good reasons for doing so and that it is not contrary to the public interest.

• Marginal note:Extension of time limit — subsection (2)

  (5) The Commission or the President may extend the time limit for making a complaint under subsection (2) if the Commission or the President, as the case may be, is of the opinion that there are good reasons for doing so and that it is not contrary to the public interest.

• Marginal note:Notice

  (6) If a complaint is made after the end of the two-year period following the day on which the conduct is alleged to have occurred and the Commissioner or President does not extend the time limit for the making of the complaint, he or she must so notify the complainant and their legal representative, if any, and the Commission and provide them with the reasons for not extending the time limit.

• Marginal note:Extension of time limit — Commission

  (6.1) The Commission may extend the time limit for the making of a complaint, even if the Commissioner or the President did not extend it, if the Commission considers it appropriate to do so.

• Marginal note:Receipt of complaint — subsection (1)

  (7) A complaint under subsection (1) must be made to

  • (a) the Commission;

  • (b) a member, as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, or other person employed under Part I of that Act; or

  • (c) the provincial authority that is responsible for the receipt of complaints against police in the province in which the subject matter of the complaint arose.

• Marginal note:Receipt of complaint — subsection (2)

  (8) A complaint under subsection (2) must be made to

  • (a) the Commission; or

  • (b) the Agency.

• Marginal note:Deeming

  (8.1) For the purposes of subsections (7) and (8), a complaint that is referred to the Commission under regulations made under subparagraph 87(o.1)(ii) is deemed to be a complaint made to the Commission.

• Marginal note:Acknowledgement and notification — subsection (7)

  (9) As soon as feasible after a person or entity referred to in subsection (7) receives a complaint, the person or entity, as the case may be, must acknowledge the complaint in writing to the complainant and their legal representative, if any, and provide written notice of the complaint to

  • (a) if the complaint was received by the Commission, the Commissioner and the provincial authority referred to in paragraph (7)(c);

  • (b) if the complaint was received by a person referred to in paragraph (7)(b), the Commission, the Commissioner and the provincial authority referred to in paragraph (7)(c); or

  • (c) if the complaint was received by the provincial authority referred to in paragraph (7)(c), the Commissioner and the Commission.

• Marginal note:Acknowledgement and notification — subsection (8)

  (10) As soon as feasible after receiving a complaint under subsection (8),

  • (a) the Commission must acknowledge the complaint in writing to the complainant and their legal representative, if any, and provide written notice of the complaint to the President; or

  • (b) the Agency must acknowledge the complaint in writing to the complainant and their legal representative, if any, and provide written notice of the complaint to the Commission.

• Marginal note:Covert operations

  (11) The Commission, the RCMP and the Agency are authorized to acknowledge a complaint or otherwise deal with a complainant in a manner that does not reveal, or from which cannot be inferred, information concerning

  • (a) whether a place, person, agency, group, body or other entity was, is or is intended to be the object of a covert investigation or a covert collection of information or intelligence; or

  • (b) the identity of any person who is, has been or is intended to be engaged in a covert collection of information or intelligence.