Public Safety Canada

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Public Safety
Sécurité publique
Canada
Department of the Government of Canada
Minister Steven Blaney
Parliamentary Secretary Candice Bergen
Established 2003
Responsibilities Public safety
Employees 52,000+
Department Website

Public Safety Canada (French: Sécurité publique Canada), formerly known as Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada (PSEPC), legally incorporated as the federal Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, is the department of the government of Canada with responsibility for protecting Canadians and helping to maintain a peaceful and safe society.

Legislation for the agency began in February 2001 and the department was created in December 2003 during a reorganization of the federal government, and it became legally established when the Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Act came into force on April 4, 2005. The agency Emergency Preparedness Canada was created under the auspices of the Defence department before the establishment of the department by the Emergency Preparedness Act of 1988.

The department was created to have a single entity with responsibility for ensuring public safety in Canada and is a direct result of lessons learned from the September 11 attacks on the United States in 2001. The department is in many ways similar to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, though it does not cover the protection of maritime sovereignty (this is covered by the Canadian Forces and Transport Canada).

Most of the department comprises organizations that were previously placed under the Department of Solicitor General of Canada, however the reorganization of several federal departments and ministries added the Canada Border Services Agency to the portfolio, after the two streams of the former Canada Customs and Revenue Agency were split in 2003. In addition, the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Emergency Preparedness (OCIPEP) from the Department of National Defence was also brought into the Department.

In addition to the department there are five agencies and three review bodies within the Public Safety portfolio headed by the Minister of Public Safety.

  • Review bodies
    • Commission for Public Complaints Against the RCMP
    • Royal Canadian Mounted Police External Review Committee
    • Office of the Correctional Investigator

Senior officials of PS include:

  • Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety
  • Deputy Minister Public Safety.
    • Associate Deputy Minister of Public Safety Canada
    • Assistant Deputy Minister, Emergency Management and Regional Operations
    • Assistant Deputy Minister, Integrated Cyber and National Security
    • Assistant Deputy Minister, Law Enforcement and Policing
    • Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic Policy
    • Assistant Deputy Minister, Community Safety and Partnerships
    • Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Management
    • Director General, Communications
    • Director General, Internal Audit and Evaluation

The annual budget of the Department is $6 billion.[1]

See also

External links

References

  1. ↑ "Who we are". Public Safety Canada. Retrieved 2011-07-19. 
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