CSIS Definition of Security Threat Irrelevant to Cabinet Decision, Ex-directors Say

Ward Elcock waits to appear before the Commons Public Safety Committee on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Oct. 25, 2010. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service’s interpretation of what constitutes a national security threat is not relevant when it comes to a government’s decision to invoke the Emergencies Act, two of the spy agency’s former directors testified at a national inquiry Wednesday.

Ward Elcock, who led CSIS from 1994 to 2004, and Richard Fadden, who led the agency between 2009 and 2013, both told the Public Order Emergency Commission that any reference to the CSIS Act should be removed from the Emergencies Act.