Fight against organized crime hampered by intelligence sharing challenges, experts say

Canada’s fight against organized crime is being hampered by long-standing challenges in how intelligence agencies can support law enforcement, a retired senior federal intelligence official with nearly four decades in government has told a security conference in Vancouver.

Lisa Ducharme, whose career included leadership roles with the Privy Council Office’s Intelligence Assessment Secretariat, the Department of National Defence, Public Safety Canada and the RCMP, said she welcomed Canada’s recent measures to tackle fentanyl and organized crime. These include appointing a fentanyl czar, establishing new intelligence partnerships and giving the Canada Border Services Agency new enforcement tools.

“But while we’re at a crossroads, I think it’s important to also reflect upon the current infrastructure that we operate in Canada to look at what is not working, what we’ve had challenges with, before we load all of these wonderful new initiatives on top,” she said at the second annual Vancouver International Security Summit, which was held on Oct. 16 and 17.