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OTTAWA — The Conservative government must strengthen review and oversight of security agencies if it plans to beef up spying and police powers, say the federal privacy and information czars.

Privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien and information commissioner Suzanne Legault are also urging the Conservatives to avoid trampling civil liberties in trying to ensure the safety of Canadians.j

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The Harper government is contemplating new laws in response to the recent attacks that killed two soldiers in broad daylight. It has also introduced long-promised changes to strengthen the ability of Canada’s spy service to probe terror suspects overseas.

It’s understandable that the government would want to consider boosting the powers of law-enforcement and national security agencies to address potential gaps, Therrien said Wednesday at a news conference.

But any new tools should be accompanied by a beefed-up role for the watchdogs who keep an eye on spies and police, he added.