Inspector General of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service
The Inspector General (IG) was established under the Canadian Security Intelligence Service Act (CSIS Act) in 1984.
Parliament passed the Jobs, Growth and Long-term Prosperity Act, in June 2012. As directed by the Act, the Government of Canada consolidated the review functions of the IG with those of the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC) – an independent external review body which reports to the Parliament of Canada on the operations of CSIS.
By consolidating review functions into a single organization – transferring responsibility for the annual Certificate to the Minister from the IG to the SIRC – we will eliminate duplication and reduce federal spending while ensuring the same level of accountability for CSIS activities.
Annual certificate
The IG produced an annual Certificate for the Minister stating the extent to which he or she was satisfied with the Annual Report of the Director of CSIS. The Certificate also advised whether, in the opinion of the IG, CSIS had done anything that was not authorized by the CSIS Act, had contravened any Ministerial Directions or had involved the unreasonable or unnecessary use of its powers.
Future Certificates will be produced by the SIRC.