As a result of their deliberations committees may make recommendations which they include in their reports for the consideration of the House of Commons or the Government. Recommendations related to this study are listed below.

Recommendation 1

That the Government of Canada continue to –

• impose severe costs on Russia for its aggression against Ukraine;
• support Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity;
• work with allies and partners to uphold the rules-based international order; and
• accelerate efforts to deter and defend against any conventional and unconventional threats to Canada’s national security.

Recommendation 2

That the Government of Canada work with provincial and territorial partners to create and promote accredited post-secondary cyber defence training programs.

Recommendation 3

That the Government of Canada, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, build on the National Cyber Security Strategy to ensure that –

• operators and enterprises of all sizes connected to critical infrastructure have the cyber security experts, expertise, and resources they need to defend against and recover from malicious cyber activity; and
• cyber security standards are met and reported on.

Recommendation 4

That the Government of Canada instruct the Communications Security Establishment to broaden the tools used to educate small- and medium-sized enterprises about the need to adopt cyber security standards.

Recommendation 5

That the Government of Canada establish incentives, including – but not limited to – an accelerated capital cost allowance or other tax measures, for small- and medium-sized enterprises to make the investments necessary to follow the Communications Security Establishment’s baseline cyber security controls.

Recommendation 6

That the Government of Canada require critical infrastructure operators – from appropriately designated sectors – to prepare for, prevent and report serious cyber incidents, and that it put in place accompanying reporting timelines, technical assistance, and protections for the information that would be reported to the Communications Security Establishment and the lessons-learned that would be shared with industry, and that it then table annual reports to Parliament on these efforts.

Recommendation 7

That the Government of Canada ensure that the cyber roles, responsibilities, and structures that exist across the federal government maximize coherence, coordination, and timely action in relation to cybersecurity, and that it submit annual reports to Parliament on these efforts.

Recommendation 8

That the Government of Canada emphasize the importance and modernization of cybersecurity in departmental mandates.

Recommendation 9

That the Government of Canada explore options for a Canada–United States cyber defence command structure.

Recommendation 10

That the Government of Canada examine the full extent of Russian disinformation – and other state-backed disinformation – targeting Canada, the actors, methods, messages and platforms involved, and the impact this disinformation is having on the Canadian population and Canada’s national security, and that it report its findings to Parliament annually.

Recommendation 11

That the Government of Canada, in collaboration with allies and domestic partners, continue to expose and counter Russian and other state-backed disinformation campaigns targeting Canadians.

Recommendation 12

That the Government of Canada work with experts, Internet Service Providers, social media platforms and international partners to counteract online bots that are amplifying state-sponsored disinformation, and that it report the findings and actions to Parliament.

Recommendation 13

That the Government of Canada support independent Russian journalists and academics who are working to expose the regime’s propaganda and disinformation.

Recommendation 14

That the Government of Canada urgently work with its international and domestic partners to combat sanctions evasion, including by taking appropriate steps to ensure all property of sanctioned Russian individuals and entities situated in Canada has been identified and frozen.

Recommendation 15

That the Government of Canada accelerate the modernization of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

Recommendation 16

That the Government of Canada ensure it has both the capacity and the funding in place to realize Canada’s defence procurement objectives, that it take all measures necessary to support the reconstitution of the Canadian Armed Forces, and that it report regularly to Parliament on its efforts to meet both these objectives.

Recommendation 17

That the Government of Canada honour its commitments to its NATO Allies and meet the Alliance’s 2% defence spending target.

Recommendation 18

That the Government of Canada put in place a register of foreign agents or a measure equivalent to the Australian Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme Act.

Recommendation 19

That the Government of Canada publish a comprehensive and integrated national security strategy, which takes into account an internal review of Canada’s national security capabilities.

Recommendation 20

That, pursuant to Section 34 of the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians Act, the House of Commons designate the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security as the House committee responsible for conducting a comprehensive review of the provisions and operation of the Act.

Recommendation 21

That the Government of Canada present to Parliament an annual assessment of threats to Canada’s national security.