Strengthen Protection of Communities Act

AI summary

Petitioners ask the Government of Canada to strengthen the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act and to increase federal coordination with provinces and the private sector to combat human trafficking. The government responds that it maintains Tier 1 status, enacted Bill C-16 strengthening trafficking offences and victim protections, and funds a renewed National Strategy.

AI summaries describe petitioners’ requests and claims. Consult the official record for the full text.

Official petition

PETITION TO THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA Whereas: The U.S. Department of State's 20th Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report indicates that Canada "meets the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking"; The TIP Report notes that Canadian governments "did not provide comprehensive data” on investigations, prosecutions, convictions, or victims' services; The range, quality, and timely delivery of trafficking-specific services varies across Canada, including persistent funding shortages; Coordination between the federal and provincial governments on anti-trafficking measures is poor; and The TIP Report urges Canadian governments to increase the use of proactive law enforcement techniques, increase training for prosecutors and judges, and increase partnerships with the private sector to prevent human trafficking. THEREFORE: We, the undersigned citizens of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to: Strengthen the Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act to address Canada's shortcomings as mentioned in the TIP Report so that Canada exceeds the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; and Cooperate and coordinate more closely with the provinces, the private sector, and other stakeholders to combat human trafficking in Canada.

Government response

Response by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency Signed by THE PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY PATRICIA LATTANZIO The United States Government’s 2025 Annual Report on Trafficking in Persons recognizes that Canada, as a Tier 1 country, fully meets the standards set out in the report to combat trafficking in persons and continues to demonstrate sustained and serious efforts. Combating trafficking in persons in Canada requires concerted action by all levels of government and a broad range of stakeholders. The Criminal Code provides a robust framework to combat human trafficking by establishing six separate offences, namely trafficking in adults, trafficking of minors, obtaining material benefit from trafficking of minors, and concealing, removing, withholding or destroying travel documents or identity documents to facilitate this crime against adults or minors. These offences carry maximum penalties of up to life imprisonment. Additionally, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act includes a specific human trafficking offence, prohibiting any person from arranging for a person's entry into Canada by means of kidnapping, fraud, deceit, threats, use of force or any other form of coercion. This offence also carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Bill C-16,the Protecting Victims Act, which received Royal Assent on June 18, 2026, includes amendments that further strengthen Canada’s criminal law response to human trafficking. The amendments: Require courts to consider a list of factors that are known to be indicative of exploitation when determining whether an accused intended to exploit a victim for the purposes of the human trafficking offences; Ensure that the defence of mistaken belief in age cannot be raised by an accused charged with child trafficking unless they can point to some evidence indicating that they took reasonable steps to ascertain the age of the alleged victim; Ensure that special procedural regimes for admissibility of evidence of the complainant’s prior sexual activity apply in all cases of human sex trafficking; Afford special protection to victims' "therapeutic records", preventing their disclosure to an accused or their use at trial, unless the accused can establish that their "innocence is at stake" unless they have access to those documents Ensure that victims of human trafficking are presumed to have the right to access alternative testimonial aids, such as testifying in the presence of a trusted person, with the assistance of a pet or behind a screen; and Expand the scope of prohibition orders (section 161) and peace bonds (section 810.1) in child trafficking cases to ensure the protection of all persons under the age of eighteen (these provisions currently protect children under the age of 16). Justice Canada provides training to law enforcement through the Human Trafficking Investigator’s Course, offered regularly through the Canadian Police College. In addition, the Government of Canada works closely with the provinces and territories to update the Handbook for Criminal Justice Practitioners on Trafficking in Persons. This handbook provides the framework for a victim-centred, trauma-informed approach to engaging with victims throughout the criminal justice system. The updated handbook, published in 2024, is available online. Work is underway to update the handbook to reflect Bill C-16’s human trafficking reforms and recent jurisprudence. The federal government works closely with provinces and territories to support victims of crime, including victims of human trafficking. Specifically, the Justice Canada Victims Fund provides funding to provincial and territorial governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and other eligible recipients to create and improve services for victims of crime, and to improve the knowledge and capacity of those who work with victims so that these professionals can better meet their needs. Justice Canada allocates at least $1 million annually through the Victims Fund to NGOs to develop and improve services for victims of human trafficking. Over the last two consecutive years (2024-2026), Justice Canada has funded 16 projects for a total commitment of $4,851,236. These projects included the development and dissemination of training on the detection and identification of cases of human trafficking, the development of intervention action plans and support services for victims of human trafficking, and the provision of specialized services to victims of human trafficking or at risk of being trafficked. Response by the Minister of Public Safety Signed by Jacques Ramsay, Parliamentary Secretary The Government of Canada takes the issue of human trafficking seriously and is committed to the protection of children, women, girls, and other members of society who are targeted in all forms of exploitation and abuse, including sexual exploitation and labour trafficking in Canada and abroad. As of June 25, 2026, in 2025, and since 2004, Canada has maintained a Tier 1 (top tier) ranking in the U.S. Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report indicating that the Government of Canada fully meets the Trafficking Victims Protection Act’s minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking. Canada continues to work with international partners such as the U.S. to cooperate and collaborate in combating this global crime. This includes contributing annually to the U.S. TIP Report and considering the recommendations directed toward Canada while taking action. The protection of victims of human trafficking is a shared responsibility among all levels of government. provinces and territories provide services such as health and social services, emergency housing, and legal aid to victims and survivors and in some cases have established their own local strategies and action plans to address human trafficking in their jurisdictions. Similarly, civil society and other non-governmental actors play a critical role in Canada’s response to this crime. The Government of Canada recognizes that human trafficking is a multifaceted issue which requires cooperation with the provinces and territories, the private sector and civil society actors. In 2019, the Government of Canada launched the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking (National Strategy), which brings together federal efforts under one strategic framework, and is supported by an ongoing investment of $10.28 million. The National Strategy includes measures aligned with the internationally recognized pillars of prevention, protection, prosecution and partnerships. Expanding on these pillars, the National Strategy includes empowerment as a fifth pillar to enhance supports and services to victims of human trafficking. As a whole-of-government approach, the National Strategy sets out a comprehensive way forward to address human trafficking and brings together all federal efforts that aim to address human trafficking under one strategic plan to ensure a collaborative and coordinated national response. Under the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking, the Federal Government has developed an enhanced governance structure to enable a more coordinated response to human trafficking. The Human Trafficking Taskforce (HTT), comprised of all relevant federal departments, was established to ensure effective coordination, implementation and management of existing and enhanced efforts to address human trafficking in Canada and abroad. Further, the HTT serves to support the alignment of anti-human trafficking initiatives with other federal government priorities (i.e., Gender-Based Violence and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls). Public Safety Canada has also established robust mechanisms to bolster existing governance through the federal HTT, these include an Assistant Deputy Minister’s meeting, and a Director-General Steering Committee on Human Trafficking which provide oversight of the horizontal initiative. Collaboration and information sharing with federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) governments through the Public Safety Canada-led FPT TIP Working Group remains central to the Government’s efforts. The Government of Canada also hosts a Justice Canada led-FPT Coordinating Committee of Senior Officials on Criminal Justice Ad Hoc Working Group on Human Trafficking. These meetings facilitate information sharing and collaboration, and the sharing of best practices and lessons learned to inform policy and program development. The Government of Canada recognizes the need to ensure its approach to combatting human trafficking remains modern, adaptable, and responsive to the changing environment. To this end, in July 2024, the Minister of Public Safety committed to the renewal of the National Strategy. Through August 2024 to March 2025, Public Safety Canada and other federal partners held engagement sessions to promote open discussion with victims and survivors, law enforcement, provinces and territories, Indigenous groups, and private sector and civil society stakeholders involved in anti-human trafficking efforts both within Canada and internationally. The Government of Canada released the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking 2023–2025 Report on July 30, 2025, which contains findings and insights from the aforementioned stakeholder engagement. Complementing renewal efforts, the Government of Canada appointed Jennifer Richardson in January 2025 as Chief Advisor to Combat Human Trafficking to provide advice and recommendations to the Minister of Public Safety on the Government of Canada’s efforts to combat human trafficking and bring awareness both domestically and internationally. The role also includes working with the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Indigenous partners to advance Calls for Justice with respect to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. As of April 2026, the Chief Advisor position is vacant. The former Chief Advisor concluded her extensive engagement with stakeholders across Canada and internationally in March 2026. Her work brought greater awareness both domestically and internationally to the issue of human trafficking, and her insights are informing efforts under the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking. The Government of Canada is committed to combating human trafficking and will continue to work diligently to better understand gaps in Canada’s collective response to this crime to build stronger and safer communities across Canada.