Foreign policy takes centre stage in Canadian election campaign as candidates clash over Islamic State, air strikes and security
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has defended measures which criminalised the promotion of terrorism and made it easier for police to detain individuals without charge.
Canada could curb its counterterrorism efforts, including air strikes against the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq, if Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Tories are defeated in October 19 elections.
The New Democrats said they would end the military mission, while the Liberals said they would withdraw Canadian war planes, but continue training forces in Iraq. The two parties also vowed to repeal or modify, respectively, a bitterly opposed anti-terror law that dramatically expanded the powers and reach of Canada's spy agency, if elected. Both are neck and neck with the Tories with just over a week before voting.
The ballot is scheduled just days before the nation commemorates the deaths of two soldiers in the first terror attacks on Canadian soil a year ago, when a soldier was run over in rural Quebec and a gunman killed a ceremonial guard and stormed parliament.
In the aftermath of the killings, the Conservatives rushed through new national security measures in the biggest overhaul of Canada's counterterrorism legislation since 2001 following the attacks in the United States.
Only Thomas Mulcair's New Democrats opposed the bill in the House. The Liberals, led by Justin Trudeau, voted for it, despite concerns that it lacked oversight and was overly broad.