Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau revokes Emergencies Act, says ‘existing laws sufficient’

Ottawa [Canada], February 24 (ANI): Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has revoked the use of the Emergencies Act on Wednesday which he imposed during massive protests in Ottawa over covid restrictions. Addressing the news conference, Trudeau said “The situation is no longer an emergency,” adding, “We are confident that existing laws and bylaws are now sufficient to keep people safe.”
He said the Governor-General will officially sign off on the revocation in the coming hours, ending the state of emergency, reported CBC News.

Earlier, Trudeau, on February 14, invoked the Emergencies Act for the first time in 50 years to give the federal government extra powers to handle ongoing truckers blockades and protests against the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. Then on February 21, MPs in the House of Commons voted to pass the federal government’s use of the Emergencies Act in response to the convoy blockades in Ottawa and at border crossings however the latest announcement revokes the Act.

The Emergencies Act, which replaced the War Measures Act in the 1980s, defines a national emergency as a temporary “urgent and critical situation” that “seriously endangers the lives, health or safety of Canadians and is of such proportions or nature as to exceed the capacity or authority of a province to deal with it.”

The Act gives special powers to respond to emergency scenarios affecting public welfare (natural disasters, disease outbreaks), public order (civil unrest), international emergencies, or war emergencies. It grants the cabinet the ability to “take special temporary measures that may not be appropriate in normal times” to cope with an “urgent and critical situation” and the resulting fallout. It is still subject to the protection of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. (ANI)