Canadian Federal/Provincial/Territorial Ministers met to Discuss PSBN and National Alerting
Ministers discussed the Emergency Management Strategy for Canada and the development of the 2023-2024 Action Plan.
Federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) ministers responsible for emergency management met today to discuss progress made on shared emergency management priorities. The devastating wildfire, flooding and hurricane seasons, and telecommunications outage of the past year have demonstrated the need for all emergency management partners to bolster disaster resilience, emergency preparedness and response capabilities in Canada together.
The meeting was co-chaired by the Honourable Bill Blair, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness, the Honourable Doyle Piwniuk, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure for Manitoba, and the Honourable Richard Mostyn, Minister of Community Services for Yukon.
Emergency Management Strategy and 2023-2024 Action Plan for Canada
Ministers discussed the Emergency Management Strategy for Canada and the development of the 2023-2024 Action Plan. They underscored the shared responsibility for emergency management and reviewed progress on advancing key actions outlined in the 2021-2022 Interim Action plan and efforts to better prepare, mitigate, respond and recover from the impacts of emergencies. Ministers agreed to continue to advance the work related to enhancing disaster response capacities, strengthening disaster recovery efforts as well as disaster prevention and mitigation. They reinforced the importance of emergency management collaboration and the continued engagement of their respective partners, including with Indigenous leadership.
National Public Alerting System
Ministers reiterated the importance of public alerting; a core public safety capability, which provides timely information to Canadians by warning the public of imminent or unfolding threats or hazards. Ministers discussed the FPT collaborative work to strengthen the overall use, sustainability, continuity of service and governance of the National Public Alerting System. Ministers instructed officials to explore alternative funding models and reiterated their desire to accelerate the work currently underway.
Public Safety Broadband Network
Ministers discussed the importance of advancing a Public Safety Broadband Network in Canada and reiterated their commitment to a coordinated pan-Canadian approach. They underscored the shared priority to develop a secure, interoperable and reliable telecommunications system, focused on the needs of provinces and territories and public safety-first responders. FPT Ministers agreed to advance the work related to a national network and discussed key next steps related to governance and priorities for moving forward on a Public Safety Broadband Network.
Discussions also were focussed on:
- Task Force on Flood Insurance and Relocation
- Review of the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements
- Humanitarian Workforce
Lance Valcour - Senior Strategic Advisor, Author & Marketing Technologist on social media said:
"Both of these issues have been priorities for the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police / Association canadienne des chefs de police (CACP) for years and where again highlighted at our conference in #Vancouver."
"I was extremely happy to see that #governance was highlight in both sections of their Joint Statement (see below) today."
"We have been stressing the need for good governance since day one and ensured that it was a key focus in the Communications Interoperability Strategy for Canada (https://lnkd.in/ed-6sijE)."
"CACP Resolution 2021-06 (https://lnkd.in/eqTrW-MG), approved last year, included the following:... "That Public Safety Canada, as a key partner in Senior Officials Responsible for Emergency Management (SOREM); to urge its provincial and territorial partners to complete a comprehensive review of the Communications Interoperability Strategy for Canada (CISC)"..."
