Canada unveils emergency response plan

OTTAWA – The federal government now has a plan on paper that outlines how it should respond to a range of emergencies, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews announced Monday.

Auditor General Sheila Fraser slammed Toews department last year for not having the emergency response program completed.

In her November report, Fraser said Public Safety Canada hadn’t exercised the necessary leadership to co-ordinate emergency management activities and she called on Toews’ department to develop policies that would clarify its role in an emergency. At the time of her audit, there was in interim federal emergency response plan and Fraser said it should be strengthened and formally approved by the government.

Toews said Monday the Federal Emergency Response Plan was developed in consultation with other federal departments and has received formal approval from the government as a whole.

The policy document outlines how Public Safety will co-ordinate responses to emergencies such as floods, forest fires, terrorist attacks, power outages, oil spills and pandemics.

"Such emergencies require close co-operation amongst all levels of government and the private sector. They require a co-ordinated, quick and effective response and they require leadership," Toews said at an event to launch the guide. "It will help to ensure that the government’s response to an emergency is seamless and timely and that key decisions can be made quickly when disaster strikes."

The plan will be activated when a province or territory requests help from Ottawa, when an emergency affects multiple jurisdictions or government departments, or when a situation directly involves federal assets, services, employees or responsibilities.