Saskatchewan looking to Alberta as it contemplates its own human trafficking legislation

Saskatchewan's attorney general and minister of justice has instructed government officials to review human trafficking legislation recently passed by the Alberta government as the province moves to develop its own legislation.

Don Morgan said the potential anti-trafficking bill, with similar legislation considered in other provinces, would create offences specifically related to human trafficking.

"We would not want to be the only jurisdiction which has chosen not to do this, then people would tend to gravitate toward our province," Morgan said in Saskatoon on Friday.

Alberta's human trafficking legislation, Bill 8, passed in May and allows for survivors of human trafficking to apply for emergency protection orders, allows for lawsuits in civil court, and makes it easier for police to obtain warrants to get someone out of an abusive situation. Most of the changes would go into effect in January 2021.

There is less than one case of human trafficking per year on average that authorities are aware of, Morgan said. The legislation would not be an investigative tool but one for protecting people, he added.

The prospective provincial legislation would act as companion bills to the Criminal Code of Canada, Morgan said.

The government said in a press release Friday that it would work with "its partners in the legal profession, policing and the community" for key issues that may be considered in any future legislation.

Asked if the province is committed to working with Indigenous stakeholders on a draft of the bill, Morgan answered "absolutely."

He added that Saskatchewan is taking a "broader look" at how it can fulfil the 231 recommendations made in the report from the inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, released in 2019.

"We would certainly want to work with Indigenous stakeholders to find the best possible results that we can, and I think it would be part of our response to MMIW," Morgan said.

Morgan said he spoke with Carolyn Bennett, federal minister of Crown-Indigenous relations, over the phone on Thursday about what further consultations might need to take place and the next steps to be taken.

"We think it's important to maintain protections and best practices, all the way across [the country]," he said.