Emergencies Act: 5 notable new powers enacted by the government

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Late Tuesday night the federal government issued the regulations outlining in more detail what new powers are being enacted though the Emergencies Act aimed at ending the trucker convoy protests and blockades. CTVNews.ca scoured the fine print and here are five notable elements you should know about.

1. Safeguarding vaccine clinics: Among the locations the federal government is considering critical infrastructure are hospitals and “locations where COVID-19 vaccines are administered,” which right now in this country presumably includes pharmacies and certain big box stores. Other examples of critical infrastructure are airports, harbours, railways, utility and power facilities, and international border crossings.

2. No kids at protest sites: The prohibition on bringing children to sites where these protests and blockades are occurring specifies that a person cannot “cause a person under the age of eighteen years to travel to or within 500 metres” of these demonstrations. There are exemptions for people who live, work, or are moving through these areas for other reasons.

3. Protecting war memorials: Among the locations the federal government is considering protected places are war memorials, in light of the acts of desecration seen in Ottawa. Specifically, that’s “any property that is a building, structure or part thereof that primarily serves as a monument to honour persons who were killed or died as a consequence of a war. Among the other protected places is the entire parliamentary precinct which includes several federal buildings and office spaces, official residences such as Rideau Cottage, and defence buildings.

4. Complying with orders: As for directing essential services, for example tow truck drivers, the order can be made verbally or in writing and the person “must comply.” The regulations also note that the compensation “must be equal to the current market price for those goods or services.”

5. Civil litigation immunity: There is “immunity” for those who follow the orders under the act, which could mean banks moving in to freeze funding or tow-truck drivers won’t face attempted civil action later on. The regulations specifically state “no proceedings under the Emergencies Act and no civil proceedings lie against an entity for complying with this this order.”

Read more here on the government’s rationale for invoking the act, further details on what is prohibited, and what the next steps are.