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Bill S-25

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2nd Session, 36th Parliament,
48-49 Elizabeth II, 1999-2000

The Senate of Canada

BILL S-25

An Act to amend the Defence Production Act

      Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

R.S., c. D-1

1. The Defence Production Act is amended by adding the following after section 2:

PART 1

PROCUREMENT OF DEFENCE SUPPLIES

2. The heading before section 26 and sections 26 to 29 of the Act are repealed.

3. Section 33 of the Act is replaced by the following:

Orders and regulations

33. The Governor in Council may make orders and regulations to carry out the purposes and provisions of this Part .

4. Subsection 34(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Regulations to be published

34. (1) Every regulation, as defined in the Statutory Instruments Act, made under the authority of this Part shall be published in the Canada Gazette within 30 days after it is made.

5. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 34:

PART 2

REGULATION OF CONTROLLED GOODS

Interpretation

Definition of ``controlled goods''

35. In this Part, ``controlled goods'' means the goods referred to in the schedule.

Application

Excluded persons

36. This Part does not apply to a person who

    (a) occupies a position in the federal public service or a federal Crown corporation or is employed by Her Majesty in right of a province, who acts in good faith in the course of their duties and employment; or

    (b) is a member of a class of persons prescribed by regulation.

Offences

Prohibitions

37. (1) No person shall, unless the person is registered under section 38 or exempt from registration under section 39, knowingly examine or possess a controlled good or transfer a controlled good to another person.

Offence re person registered or exempt

(2) No person registered or exempt from registration shall knowingly transfer a controlled good to or permit the examination of a controlled good by a person who is not registered or exempt from registration.

Definition of ``transfer''

(3) In this section, ``transfer'' means, in respect of a controlled good, to dispose of it or disclose its content in any manner.

Scope of registration

(4) The registration of a person extends to the officers, directors and employees authorized by the registered person in accordance with the regulations.

Registration

By Minister

38. (1) The Minister may, in accordance with the regulations, register any person who makes an application for registration and may, for that purpose, request any information that in the opinion of the Minister is necessary.

Conditions

(2) A registration or its renewal is subject to conditions prescribed by regulation and any conditions that in the opinion of the Minister are appropriate.

Denial - security assessment

(3) The Minister may deny an application for registration or suspend, amend or revoke a registration on the basis of a security assessment prescribed by regulation.

Certificate of registration

(4) The Minister shall furnish a registered person with a certificate of that registration in a form that the Minister may specify.

Exemption

By Minister

39. (1) The Minister may, in accordance with the regulations, exempt an individual or a class of individuals from registration and may, for that purpose, request any information that in the opinion of the Minister is necessary.

Conditions

(2) An exemption or its renewal is subject to conditions prescribed by regulation and any conditions that in the opinion of the Minister are appropriate.

Denial - security assessment

(3) The Minister may deny, suspend, amend or revoke an exemption on the basis of a security assessment prescribed by regulation.

Certificate of exemption

(4) The Minister shall furnish an exempt individual or the representative of a class of exempt individuals with a certificate of that exemption in a form that the Minister may specify.

Report

To Minister

40. Every registered person shall provide the Minister with any information prescribed by regulation, in the manner and time prescribed by regulation.

Inspection

Designation of inspectors

41. (1) The Minister may designate persons or classes of persons whom the Minister considers qualified to act as inspectors for the purposes of this Part.

Certificate of designation

(2) The Minister shall furnish every inspector with a certificate of designation as an inspector and, on entering any place or inspecting any thing, an inspector shall show the certificate to the person apparently in charge of the place or thing if the person requests proof of the inspector's designation.

Inspection of facilities

42. (1) For the purpose of ensuring compliance with this Part and the regulations, an inspector may at any reasonable time enter and inspect any place.

Powers of inspector

(2) When conducting the inspection, the inspector may

    (a) require the attendance of and question any person who the inspector considers will be able to assist in the inspection;

    (b) require any person to produce for inspection and copying any document that the inspector believes contains any information relevant to the administration of this Part or the regulations;

    (c) detain or remove any controlled good, until the inspector is satisfied that the requirements of this Part and the regulations are met; and

    (d) require that any individual in charge of a place that is the subject of an inspection take any measures that the inspector considers appropriate.

Inspector may be accompanied

(3) While exercising any authority under this Part, an inspector may be accompanied by any other person chosen by the inspector.

Regulations

Governor in Council

43. The Governor in Council may make regulations for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Part, including regulations

    (a) respecting the classes of persons referred to in paragraph 36(b);

    (b) respecting the procedure, under subsection 37(4), for authorizing officers, directors and employees to examine, possess or transfer controlled goods and the conditions they must satisfy to be authorized;

    (c) respecting registrations under section 38 and exemptions from registration under section 39, including

      (i) the conditions of eligibility,

      (ii) the procedure to be followed in making applications and the information to be set out in the applications,

      (iii) the factors to be considered by the Minister when deciding whether a person may be registered or exempted,

      (iv) the Minister's powers to renew, suspend, amend or revoke a registration or an exemption,

      (v) the conditions of registration or the renewal of a registration, including the keeping of records, the requirement to report under section 40, and the establishment and implementation of security plans,

      (vi) the conditions of exemption or the renewal of an exemption, and

      (vii) security assessments made under subsection 38(3) or 39(3); and

    (d) amending, on the joint recommendation of the Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the schedule.

PART 3

OFFENCE AND PUNISHMENT

Other prohibitions

44. No person shall

    (a) make any false or misleading statement or provide false or misleading information to an inspector or other person carrying out functions under this Act;

    (b) destroy any record or document required to be kept under this Act or the regulations;

    (c) make a false entry in a record required to be kept under this Act or the regulations or omit to make any entry in such a record;

    (d) interfere in any way with any thing detained or removed by an inspector, except with the inspector's permission; or

    (e) fail to comply with any reasonable request of an inspector or otherwise obstruct an inspector in the performance of the inspector's functions.

Serious offence

45. (1) Every person who contravenes section 37 is guilty of

    (a) an offence punishable on summary conviction and liable to a fine not exceeding $100,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to both; or

    (b) an indictable offence and liable to a fine not exceeding $2,000,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years, or to both.

Other offences

(2) Every person who contravenes any other provision of this Act or the regulations is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction and liable to a fine not exceeding $25,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or to both.

Defence of due diligence

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2), no person shall be found to have contravened section 13 or 44 or the regulations if the person exercised all due diligence to prevent the contravention.

Continuing offence

(4) If an offence is committed or continued on more than one day, the person who commits it is liable to be convicted of a separate offence for each day on which the offence is committed or continued.

Factors to be considered when imposing sentence

(5) If an offender is convicted under subsection (1), the court imposing a sentence on the offender shall, in addition to considering any other relevant factors, consider the nature of the controlled goods that are the subject-matter of the offence.

Limitation period for summary conviction offences

(6) Proceedings by way of summary conviction may be instituted at any time within, but not later than, three years after the day on which the subject-matter of the proceedings arose.

Officers, etc., of corporation

46. An officer, director or agent of a corporation that commits an offence under this Act is liable to be convicted of the offence if he or she directed, authorized, assented to, acquiesced in or participated in the commission of the offence, whether or not the corporation has been prosecuted or convicted.

6. The headings before sections 3, 10, 12, 16 and 30 of the Act are converted from small capitals to upper and lower case italic type to conform with the format of the new Parts enacted by this Act.

7. The Act is amended by adding, after section 47, the schedule set out in the schedule to this Act.

Coming into force

8. The provisions of this Act come into force on a day or days to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.