New report says weak inspections, fragmented oversight and outdated security leave Canada’s western trade gateway exposed

WINNIPEG, Man. — Canada’s Pacific ports are increasingly vulnerable to organized crime, drug trafficking and hostile foreign actors because of fragmented oversight, limited inspections and inadequate enforcement, according to a new report released today by the Frontier Centre for Public Policy.

The report, Canada’s Pacific Ports Are Under-Secured, argues that Vancouver and Prince Rupert have become attractive targets because criminals and hostile states view the likelihood of detection as low. Publicly available federal audit data show fewer than two per cent of shipping containers entering Metro Vancouver are X-rayed or otherwise scanned while fewer than one per cent are physically opened and searched.