A controversial bill passed Wednesday in the House of Commons reflects the changing nature of terrorist threats in North America, said Public Safety Minister Vic Toews on Thursday.
The Combatting Terrorism Act passed with the support of the Liberals 183-93, while the New Democrats opposed the legislation.
The bill reinstates tools brought into existence in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that allowed investigators to detain or question suspects without charge, and arrest and charge those believed to have left the country for terror training.
"The nature of the challenge is changing," Toews said Thursday on CTV's Canada AM.
"We used to think of terrorist activity as being a group of individuals coming from abroad and creating difficulties in North America, whether it's Canada or the United States. What we've learned over the last number of years is homegrown terrorism presents a real and very different threat than the 9-11 threat but the tools necessary are still very much the same."
Also known as Bill S-7, the legislation reinstates a number of post-9-11 measures that expired after five years.
One measure allows police to take "preventative measures," by holding someone for up to three days without charge if they suspect them of being involved in terrorism. After that, the individual can be put under supervision for up to a year.
Another measure brought back under S-7 allows a suspect to be questioned in an "investigative hearing" where the purpose is to obtain information about terrorism, something Toews said "is not a unilateral police action to obtain statements or impose recognizance. This is done under the supervision and authority of the court."
The bill would also increase existing penalties for certain terrorism-related offences and make it illegal to leave Canada for the purpose of receiving terrorist training or committing acts of terror.
"I think it's very important for our international obligations to prevent that," Toews said, adding that the Supreme Court of Canada has said Bill S-7 is constitutionally valid.
Critics have questioned the government's decision to bring the legislation to the House of Commons this week, after it had languished in Parliament for over a year. Last Friday it was announced S-7 would be debated Monday. That day, two men accused of plotting to derail a train on a Via Rail route in the GTA were arrested in Toronto and Montreal.
The legislation also came in the wake of the deadly Boston Marathon explosions, and the week-long search for two brothers accused of bombing the event.
And prior to that, the RCMP confirmed that two Canadians from London, Ont., had taken part in an attack on an Algerian gas plant that left dozens dead. A third London man is being held in a Mauritanian prison and a fourth is being investigated by police.
Toews said the measure that makes it a crime to travel abroad to commit acts of terrorism is "the most important provision" in Bill S-7.
The government has acknowledged that while the bill gives new tools to investigators, it "does not directly address the issue of radicalization," Andrew Gowing, a spokesman for the Justice Department, told The Canadian Press in an email Wednesday.
"It does, however, ensure that law enforcement have the means to anticipate and respond effectively to terrorism, thereby complementing the government's ongoing efforts to combat radicalization leading to violent extremism," he said.
During the debate in Commons, New Democrat MP Dany Morin suggested the government was rushing the bill forward at a politically opportunistic time.
"A responsible Canadian government would not have kept hitting the snooze button until tragedy struck somewhere else in the world," Morin said.
The Combatting Terrorism Act was first introduced to the Senate in February 2012, and included earlier elements first brought forward unsuccessfully in 2007.
Laws were brought in after 9-11 to allow police to bring people before a judge for questioning if they believed they had useful information about a terrorism act. And police were given the ability to make pre-emptive arrests if they believed an act of terrorism was imminent.
Those measures expired after five years.
If and when the bill receives Royal Assent, the measures will once again be in force for another five years.
