Alberta to proceed with Emergencies Act challenge despite it being lifted: Kenney
Alberta will proceed in its request for a judicial review of the federal government's use of the Emergencies Act against trucker convoy protests, Premier Jason Kenney said Wednesday.
Rising in the legislature to address what he called “one of the most obvious overreaches of government power in my lifetime,” Kenney said the fact the act was revoked earlier in the day is irrelevant.
“That does not change the profound concerns of Canadians, of Albertans and this assembly with this unnecessary, unjustified and disproportionate use of arbitrary police power in our lifetime with no good reason,” Kenney said.
Kenney said there never was an emergency that justified the act's extraordinary powers.
He pointed out that the border blockade at Coutts, Alta., was cleared before the act was brought in. He said Ottawa police had plenty of laws that prevented semi-trailer rigs from being parked on the streets of downtown Ottawa.
“We had no shortage of law. What we had was a shortage of enforcement.”
On Twitter, Kenney called the lifting of the act a “humiliation” for those who supported it.
The Opposition NDP said the blockade at Coutts, which lasted more than two weeks, was a failure of the province's United Conservative Party government to uphold the law.
“Promises of yet another trip to Federal Court are nothing more than Kenney trying to distract Albertans from the fact that two of his UCP MLAs actively encouraged that illegal blockade, which caused almost $800 million in damage to the Alberta economy, and included extremists who are alleged to have stockpiled weapons and conspired to murder police officers,” justice critic Irfan Sabir said in a statement.
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association also said that it plans to pursue its court challenge of the Emergencies Act.
In a release, the association said it's important for the courts to comment on the legal threshold and constitutional issues to guide the actions of future governments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 23, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.7029443.1725744633!/httpImage/image.png_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.png)
Police release video of Toronto plaza shooting that killed university student
A university student from Brampton was killed when two shooters fired indiscriminately into a crowded plaza in Toronto last month in what police say was a 'cowardly act.'
BREAKING Numerous people shot in Kentucky near Interstate 75, officials say
Several people have been shot near Interstate 75 in Laurel County, Kentucky, according to the Laurel County Sheriff’s office.
The iPhone is getting a 'glow' up. What to expect from Apple's Monday event
Apple excited fans with its vision for its 'Apple Intelligence' artificial intelligence system earlier this year. Now, it's time for the company to prove it really works.
No more porta-potties at B.C. construction sites starting Oct. 1
What some B.C. construction workers describe as the worst aspect of their jobs will be coming to an end next month, the province announced.
'Hopeless and helpless': Regina mother seeks help to treat rare spinal disease
Mary Grace Rico is seeking help in getting treatment for a rare spinal condition.
'Extremely vigorous' wildfire activity in central B.C. prompts crews to back off for safety
The wildfire fight in central B.C. intensified Friday, according to officials.
Trump campaigns in Wisconsin just days ahead of debate with Harris
With just days to go before his first — and likely only — debate against U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris, former U.S. president Donald Trump leaned into his familiar grievances about everything from his indictments to the border as he campaigned in one of the most deeply Republican swaths of battleground Wisconsin.
They were due to leave for their dream cruise in May. Three months on they’re still stuck at the departure port
It was the years-long cruise that was supposed to set sail, but saw its departure postponed… postponed… and postponed again.