Attorney General Sean Fraser is suing to stop his own government from releasing a report on military informants that federal lawyers claim could harm national defence if made public.In a filing to Federal Court, the Department of Justice asked a judge to quash the scheduled release of the document, obtained through Access to Information, arguing “the risks to national defence in the event of disclosure or publication are significant.”Blacklock's Reporter says the report was written in 2023 by the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency, which has authority to examine all federal security and intelligence operations. The agency has tried for more than a year to publish its findings on a “human source handling program” within the Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces..Military officials demanded heavy redactions, but the agency refused, saying disclosure was reasonable and lawful. Federal lawyers countered that the agency’s decision amounted to an “improper exercise of discretion” and violated procedural fairness by not giving the military another chance to argue for censorship.Despite repeated warnings from Defence, the agency advised last fall that it intended to release the report. The Justice Department has not specified why its publication would endanger security, and the Agency has not yet replied to Fraser’s court application.Parliament created the Agency in 2019 to ensure federal intelligence and defence activities remain lawful, reasonable and necessary.
