Annual Report 2004-2005 - An Operational Review of CSIS Activities

Section 2 : CSIS Accountability Mechanisms

A. Reporting Requirements

At least once a year, the Director of CSIS is required to submit to the Minister a report on the operational activities of the Service in accordance with Section 33(1) of the CSIS Act, which in turn is given to the Inspector General. After receiving the Director's report, the Inspector General is required to submit to the Minister a certificate stating the extent to which she or he is satisfied with the report, and to inform the Ministerof any unauthorized activities or any unreasonable or unnecessary use of powers.The Minister is then required to submit the Director's report and the Inspector General's Certificate to SIRC.

Under Section 38(a)(i) of the CSIS Act, SIRC is required to review the Director's report and the Inspector General's certificate. SIRC's examination of the Director's report and Inspector General's certificate has proven helpful in identifying potential areas for future research and review. The Committee also uses the Director's report and the Inspector General's certificate to make yearly comparisons of CSIS activities and to monitor the performance of existing and new programs and sectors.

This section of SIRC's annual report reviews the Director's report, the Inspector General's certificate and summarizes other CSIS reporting requirements.

Certificate of the Inspector General for 2004

The position of Inspector General (IG) was established in 1984 under the CSIS Act. The IG functions as the Minister's internal auditor of CSIS, reviewing the Service's operations. The Inspector General is responsible to the Deputy Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, providing an independent means of assurance that CSIS is complying with the CSIS Act, Ministerial Direction and operational policy.

The certificate issued in November 2004 was the first to be issued by the current IG,who was appointed in December 2003. SIRC noted that the IG has adopted the validation process established by her predecessor, which consists of the review of select information and intelligence collected and retained by the Service. It also includes an examination of branch accountability reports and the "facting" on which they are based.

The IG also chose to review:

• a selected sample of warrants, targets and human-source case management;
• a sample of CSIS's foreign arrangements;
• CSIS's assistance to the Departments of Foreign Affairs and National Defence in the collection of foreign intelligence in Canada; and
• CSIS's involvement in the Integrated National Security Assessment Centre, the security certificate process, and a counter-intelligence operation.

In the certificate, it was noted that the Director of CSIS also reported five incidents of non-compliance with operational policy for 2003–2004. The IG looked into each of these incidents and found that appropriate action had been taken in each case.

In this year's certificate, the Inspector General reported to the Minister that she was "as satisfied as she could be" with the Director's annual report on the Service's operational activities. She concluded that the Service had exercised its duties and functions with a commendable degree of professionalism.

CSIS Director's Annual Operational Report 2003–2004

Every year, as noted, the Director of CSIS prepares for the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness a report on the operational activities of the Service, which is sent to SIRC for review. The report outlines the achievements realized and challenges encountered by the Service in the preceding period.

In the 2003-2004 edition of this report, the Director noted that CSIS resources have expanded since the September 11th attacks, and also addressed specific challenges in meeting the demands of the current threat environment. The Director noted that perhaps the greatest challenge is the international and transnational nature of threats to the security of Canada, which have broadened the platform of Service operations. He noted that, increasingly, the most effective means of acquiring threat-related information is to obtain it offshore. The Director also highlighted an increasing need for joint operations and the Service's efforts to build relationships for greater liaison capacity with domestic partners and foreign allies.

i. Counter Terrorism

The report noted that the Service's highest priorities continue to be public safety and safeguarding against terrorist attacks occurring in or originating from Canada. The report described the priority counter-terrorism (CT) investigation, Sunni Islamic extremism. Other ongoing CT investigations were summarized, including the initiation of a new investigation into the potential for violence related to instability and conflict in a specific country. A reduced threat level led the Service to terminate one particular investigation. The Director also described targeting authorities for certain terrorist organizations, mainly with respect to fundraising and support activities being undertaken in Canada.

The activities of the Terrorist Financing Unit (TFU) within the Counter Terrorism Branch were also summarized. This unit provides the Government of Canada with intelligence on the nature and extent of terrorist financing networks in Canada. As of April 1, 2004, there were 24 organizations listed as a result of the terrorist entity listing process.

ii. Counter Proliferation

The Director's report outlined ongoing Counter Proliferation (CP) investigations, including state sponsored terrorism as well as the foreign interference and espionage activities of specific foreign governments. The CP Branch was also responsible for Counter Proliferation Operations, the Foreign Intelligence and Assessments section, and the Integrated National Security Assessment Centre, which was scheduled to be reorganized into the Integrated Threat Assessment Centre, under the direction of the Prime Minister's National Security Advisor.

CSIS's Counter Proliferation Branch investigated the continuing threat posed by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The Director reported that the international nature of the threat meant that many of the Service's investigations in the counter-proliferation area required close cooperation with allied intelligence services.

iii. Threat Assessment Centre

Also featured in the report were the activities of the CP Branch's Threat Assessment Centre, which is responsible for the Threat Assessment Unit (TAU) among others.The TAU is responsible for analyzing potential threats to Canadian interests at home or abroad, as well as threats to foreign interests and internationally protected persons located or travelling in Canada. The report noted the introduction of defined threat levels and the creation of a working group within the TAU in Ottawa.

The Director reported that the CP Branch worked closely with Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), the Canada Border Services Agency and the then-Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA) to deny or monitor the entry to Canada of individuals who might pose a threat to the security of Canada.

The report also detailed the Branch's activities in support of efforts to remove two individuals from Canada, and in providing litigation support in two other cases in which the assessment of danger is ongoing.

iv. Integrated National Security Assessment Centre

During 2003–2004, the CSIS Director also reported to the Minister on the work of the Integrated National Security Assessment Centre (INSAC), which became operational in February 2003. This group comprised federal agencies with various responsibilities in the national security area, and allowed participants to access, share, analyze and disseminate information and intelligence. INSAC's efforts focussed on specific subjects of immediate and near-term interest. The Centre has since been replaced by the Integrated Threat Assessment Centre (ITAC), under the policy direction of the Prime Minister's National Security Advisor. Functional, day-to-day responsibility for the ITAC lies with the Director, CSIS.

v. Counter Intelligence

The report highlighted the work of the Counter Intelligence (CI) Branch. This branch investigates the activities of specific countries that dedicate significant effort to the clandestine collection of information to further their political, military and economic intelligence goals, as well as interference in expatriate communities in Canada. The report outlined the activities of certain countries and noted additional countries that were the subject of CI investigations.

vi. Human Source Program

The Director's report also detailed the Service's human source program, providing information on the number of human sources and the cost of the program. The Director's exercise of delegated authority for certain source activities was also reported,along with instances of Ministerial approval required in specific circumstances.

vii. Other Key Points

The Director noted that the creation of the Canada Border Services Agency was one of the most significant developments for the Security Screening Immigration Program during the reporting period. The report outlined the activities in the Security Screening Branch's four components that comprise immigration screening.

CSIS provides security assessments for all federal government departments (excluding the RCMP), and has several site-access programs, a Provincial Government Program and reciprocal agreements with foreign agencies. Specific activities in relation to each of these programs were outlined in the report.

During the reporting period, CSIS managed 16 Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) with federal government departments and agencies and MOUs with eight provinces. The Director reported no significant issues in relation to these arrangements.

The report also outlined Service activities concerning the 247 foreign arrangements in place as of March 31, 2004, including 13 new arrangements and the consolidation of three existing arrangements. Also of note, the Director reported on the efforts and challenges facing the Scientific and Technical Services Branch.

Unlawful Conduct by CSIS

Under Section 20(2) of the CSIS Act, the Director of CSIS must submit a report to the Minister when, in the Director's opinion, a CSIS employee may have acted unlawfully in performing his or her duties and functions. The Minister, in turn, must send the report with her comments to the Attorney General of Canada and to SIRC.

In 2004-2005, the Service reported no such activity to the Minister.

Section 2(d) Investigations

The Service is authorized to collect, analyze and retain information and intelligence on activities that may be suspected of constituting a threat to the security of Canada. Section 2(d) of the CSIS Act defines a threat to include: activities directed towards undermining by covert unlawful acts, or intended to lead to the destruction or overthrow by violence of, the system of government in Canada. The Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness must authorize CSIS investigations of these threats. The Service reported that in 2004-2005, the Minister did not approve any investigations under Subsection 2(d).

Disclosures of Information in the Public or National Interest

CSIS may disclose information it has obtained in the performance of its duties and functions only in accordance with the specific conditions set out in Section 19 of the CSIS Act. Section 19(2)(d) of the Act authorizes the Minister to approve disclosures to individuals identified in the section, where such a disclosure would be in the public interest and that interest outweighs the resulting invasion of privacy.

The Service reported to SIRC that no such disclosures were approved in 2004-2005.