Hello Steve,
-=> Quoting Steve Walford to Marc Chabot <=-
  -=> Heres a UK guy 18 Jan 97  19:55:14 <=-
  First I would just like to mention that I've been watching
this conference for many months now & quite enjoy most of
the interesting info & banter going on in here.  Keep it up
folks.  ;)
 SW> Well the way I read it in the US you are allowed to listen to
 SW> anything as long as it is not specifically prohibited.
 SW> Whats the situation in Canada.
 In two words - no restrictions.  OK, maybe that's a little
general, but it is applicable.  I would like to qualify my
statements by saying that I'm not a lawyer nor am I a 
HAM, but I have been an SWL & scanner user for many years.
 An interpretation (Haruteq Scanner Book) of the "Radiocom
munication Act" reads as follows;  "-Scanners/scanning legal
anywhere in Canada; -no `off-limit' frequencies; -no license 
req'd; -do not use what you hear for personal gain; -do not 
tell others what you heard."  They do add "...the Manitoba 
Highways Act...actually spells out you cannot use a scanner
in your car while cruising Manitoba.  Could it be Canadian 
laws are not as clear as we thought they were?"
 Of course standard common sense would apply.  If you were 
to continually show up at hold-up scenes before the police
or if you were to always be at the scene of fires when the 
authorities arrived on the scene you can bet questions 
would be asked.  Here in Quebec, the God-forsaken province 
& embarrasment of Canada, the Surete (provincial police)
have a nasty hasbit of making up the law as they go along
so you may not be charged for using a scanner but all the 
same you might see it "accidentally" dropped on the floor
with the force of a 250 lb bully's pitching arm or they
just might lose it or even claim they never saw you with 
it in the first place, you'd still end up with a good 
beating for your troubles.
 Basically there's no problem as we stand right in front of 
the police with scanners & they don't even bat an eye for 
the most part.  However I wouldn't open the speaker blaring
a police freq - that might be pushing things a bit as the
police here are all a bunch of nervous-nellies.  They do 
often say (when it suits them) that they have no problem 
with people listening to their comms as it proves they are 
being responsible in the conduct of their duties.
 Most CDN fesderal police freqs are scrambled when there is
any priority but the standard RCPM freqs are easy to scan.
 SW> Across here it seems to be you can only listen to what is allowed
 SW> on your licence, I will stand corrected but I think it mentions
 SW> somewhere broadcast for the general public etc.
 Is this a HAM license you are referring to or is there a 
scanner-specific license?  How much do you pay for this?
 SW> At one time it was frowned on if you used a scanner at airports to
 SW> monitor the traffic but the last time I was at Manchester I seem to
 SW> remember reading that they allowed there use, but reserved the
 SW> right to withdraw the permission if they wished.
 SW> What is the situation in Canada / US
 I have had a few folks tell me that there was indeed a time
during the 60's & 70's when it was also frowned upon to 
fire up a scanner in the vicinity of an airport, not because 
you were breaking a law, but simply because of the threat of
terrorism.  That seems to be much less the case now although 
an RCMP officer told nme that if you were "too regular" at 
airports with your scanner you could expect to be picked up 
for a "little questioning" courtesy of the RCMP.  I can 
understand this & even though it would be a violation of 
your rights I think it is better to err on the side of care
rather than have the poice be apathetic.  If one uses their 
head they will obviously try to be discrete & not make 
themselves appear to be a bit more than a tail-watcher.
 Anyhow, there's my two-farthings' worth.  Hopefully 
winter's not being too harsh on you, we heard Europe is 
having a rough one this year.  It sure is cold here, but
that's to be expected, this is Canada, after all.
 Best Regards,
 KLB            SPITFIRE        8:{)>
... You can trust the govt..Just ask an Indian.
--- Blue Wave/DOS v2.21 [NR]
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