Bill S-222 explained in plain English
An Act to amend the Canada Border Services Agency Act (Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency) and to make consequential amendments to other Acts
Federal Parliament bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Parliament of Canada snapshot for 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. MP vote breakdowns appear when the House of Commons publishes a recorded division export for that bill. Senate and House stage details include official debate/sitting links when LEGISinfo publishes them.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
Bill S-222 establishes an Inspector General position for the Canada Border Services Agency with authority to investigate complaints and report on the Agency's activities.
Bill S-222 creates a new oversight position called the Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency. This Inspector General would be appointed by the Governor in Council after consultation with leaders of recognized political parties and approval by both the Senate and House of Commons. The Inspector General would serve a seven-year term and could be reappointed for additional terms. They would have the rank and powers of a deputy head of a department and could not hold any other paid positions. The Inspector General's main duties would be to monitor and report on the Canada Border Services Agency's activities, including how the Agency makes decisions, handles complaints, exercises enforcement powers (like arrest and search), manages information, and respects individual rights. The Inspector General could also investigate complaints made by anyone about the Agency's actions. When investigating complaints, the Inspector General could summon witnesses, require them to give evidence under oath, and receive documents and information. All investigations would be conducted in private. The Inspector General would report findings to both the Minister and the President of the Agency, and could make recommendations. The complainant would be notified of investigation results. The Inspector General must prepare annual reports on activities for Parliament and can issue special reports on urgent matters. All reports would be tabled in Parliament by the Minister within 15 days. The bill also makes technical changes to various federal laws to include the Inspector General's office in schedules and lists of government institutions covered by those laws, including the Access to Information Act, Privacy Act, Official Languages Act, and other statutes. The bill comes into force on a date set by the Governor in Council, and only after Parliament has appropriated funds for the position.
- Creates a new position of Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency
- Establishes the appointment process requiring Governor in Council appointment after consultation with party leaders and approval by Senate and House of Commons
- Sets the term of office at seven years with eligibility for renewal
- Grants the Inspector General the rank and powers of a deputy head of department
- Grants the Inspector General powers to summon witnesses, compel evidence under oath, and receive documents
- Gives the Inspector General mandate to monitor and report on the Agency's activities, including decision-making, complaint handling, enforcement powers, information management, and respect for individual rights
- Authorizes the Inspector General to investigate complaints from any person about the Agency's actions
- Requires the Inspector General to provide annual reports to Parliament on activities
- Authorizes the Inspector General to issue special urgent reports
- Establishes that investigations are conducted in private
- Allows the Inspector General to make recommendations to the Minister and President of the Agency
- Requires Parliament to be notified of investigation results through tabled reports
- Makes consequential amendments to multiple federal laws to recognize the Inspector General's office
- Provides for the appointment of staff to assist the Inspector General
- Establishes grounds for refusing or ceasing investigations if complaints are trivial, frivolous, vexatious, made in bad faith, or outside jurisdiction
- Grants the Inspector General access to Agency information necessary to perform duties
- Imposes confidentiality obligations on the Inspector General and staff
- Establishes exceptions to confidentiality when public interest clearly outweighs potential harm
- Makes obstruction of the Inspector General an offence punishable by fine up to $1,000
- Provides immunity from civil and criminal proceedings for actions taken in good faith
- Creates a right for complainants to apply to Federal Court for a remedy within 60 days of receiving investigation results
- Canada Border Services Agency and its officers, employees and agents
- The Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
- The President of the Canada Border Services Agency
- Any person who wishes to make a complaint about the Agency's actions
- Parliament (Senate and House of Commons)
- The Governor in Council
- Federal civil servants who may be temporarily engaged to assist the Inspector General
- The Attorney General of Canada (regarding disclosure of offence information)
- The Inspector General must monitor and report on the Agency's activities
- The Inspector General must investigate complaints from any person about the Agency unless the complaint is trivial, frivolous, vexatious, made in bad faith, or outside jurisdiction
- The Inspector General must conduct investigations in private
- The Inspector General must inform the complainant and notify the Minister and President before commencing an investigation
- The Inspector General must report investigation results to the complainant after investigation is complete
- The Inspector General must provide annual reports to Parliament within three months of fiscal year end
- The Inspector General can issue special urgent reports to Parliament at any time
- The Inspector General must keep confidential any information obtained during investigations except as required by law or permitted by the Act
- The Inspector General must have access to Agency information necessary to perform duties
- The Inspector General must comply with security requirements and take required oaths of secrecy
- The Inspector General can summon witnesses and compel them to give evidence under oath
- The Inspector General has immunity from civil and criminal proceedings for actions taken in good faith
- Complainants have the right to make representations and present evidence during investigations
- Complainants can apply to Federal Court for a remedy within 60 days of receiving investigation results
- No person can obstruct the Inspector General in performing duties (violation is an offence)
- The Inspector General cannot disclose information protected by solicitor-client privilege, cabinet confidence, national security, privacy interests, or commercial interests unless public interest clearly outweighs potential harm
- The bill received First Reading on June 16, 2014
- The bill is currently at consideration in committee in the Senate
- The Act comes into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council (commencement is conditional on Parliament appropriating funds)
- Funds must be appropriated by Parliament for the purposes of the Act before it can come into force
- The Inspector General will be paid remuneration determined by the Governor in Council
- The Inspector General is entitled to reasonable travel and living expenses
- The Treasury Board must approve the remuneration and expenses of temporary technical or specialized consultants engaged by the Inspector General
- Staff must be appointed to assist the Inspector General in accordance with the Public Service Employment Act
- Obstruction of the Inspector General is an offence punishable on summary conviction by a fine not exceeding $1,000 (section 15.20)
- The specific date when the Act comes into force is not specified in the bill; it depends on a future Governor in Council order and Parliament appropriating funds
- The bill does not specify the salary amount for the Inspector General, only that it will be determined by the Governor in Council
- The bill does not specify the size of the Inspector General's staff or detailed budget
- The bill does not detail what specific procedures the Inspector General must follow when investigating, only that the Inspector General may determine procedures subject to the Act
- The bill text does not explain what the current oversight arrangements for the Canada Border Services Agency are or how this position changes them
- The bill does not specify timelines for the Inspector General to complete investigations or issue reports beyond the annual reporting requirement and the six-month initial response period for complainants
- The definition of 'triviality', 'frivolousness', or 'vexatiousness' for refusing to investigate is left to the Inspector General's discretion
Two new sections added: a definition of 'Inspector General' and new sections 15.2-15.26 establishing the Inspector General position, powers, duties, investigation procedures, reporting requirements, offences, and court remedies
Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency added to the list of institutions subject to access to information requirements
Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency added to the schedule of designated entities
Office of the Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency added to Schedule I.1 (under responsibility of Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness) and Schedule IV
Office of the Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency added to the schedule of other government institutions subject to the Privacy Act
Office of the Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency added to the list of offices with official language obligations
Office of the Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency added to Schedule I under 'Other Portions of the Public Service'
Office of the Inspector General of the Canada Border Services Agency added to Schedule 2, making employees eligible for whistleblower protections
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textParliamentary Process
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Introduction and first reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
Bill S-222 completed its second reading in the Senate on June 19, 2014, and was subsequently referred to committee for consideration.
This artifact details the Senate's second reading stage for Bill S-222, concerning the creation of an Inspector General for the Canada Border Services Agency. The second reading stage was completed on Thursday, June 19, 2014. Following this, the bill was referred to committee on Tuesday, November 25, 2014, where it is currently being considered. Major speeches related to the second reading occurred on October 30, 2014, and November 25, 2014.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Debate at second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Sponsor’s speech yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Debate at second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
During the Senate's second reading debate on Bill S-222, the government opposed the bill to create an Inspector General for the Canada Border Services Agency, citing existing review mechanisms, after which the bill was passed and referred to committee.
On November 25, 2014, the Senate met for its second reading debate on Bill S-222. The bill aims to establish an Inspector General for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). During the debate, Senator Vernon White spoke in opposition to the bill on behalf of the government, outlining existing review mechanisms for the CBSA and expressing concerns about the bill's proposed mandate, particularly regarding its lack of precision, potential for oversight rather than review, privacy implications, and unclear integration with current processes. The Senate proceeded to vote on the motion for second reading and adopted the bill. Subsequently, the bill was referred to the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence for further study. The rest of the sitting included tributes to former senators, discussions on other bills and committee business, and procedural matters.
During the second reading debate in the Senate on Bill S-222, the government expressed opposition to establishing an Inspector General for the Canada Border Services Agency, citing existing oversight mechanisms, before the bill was passed at second reading and referred to committee.
On November 25, 2014, the Senate began the process of the second reading of Bill S-222, which aims to amend the Canada Border Services Agency Act by establishing an Inspector General. Senator Vernon White spoke in opposition to the bill on behalf of the government, stating that existing review mechanisms are sufficient and that the bill's proposed mandate is imprecise and raises privacy concerns. He argued that the bill is inconsistent with current review processes and urged senators to vote against it. Following his speech, the Senate moved to adopt the bill for second reading, and it was subsequently referred to the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence for further study. The rest of the Senate proceedings on this day included tributes to various individuals, tabling of reports, and debates on other bills and matters.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
Debate and sitting links point to official parliamentary sources when LEGISinfo publishes them. Any plain-language discussion summaries should be generated from those official texts and reviewed before public display.
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced