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Canadian lawmakers voted to expand the ongoing investigation into allegations of foreign interference in Canadian politics to include an inquiry into the recent federal elections of 2021.
The vote to expand the inquiry came days after new reports that China was trying to interfere in Canada’s federal elections.
The Standing Committee on Procedural and House Affairs agreed on Tuesday afternoon to extend the committee indefinitely and schedule at least three more meetings later this month.
Committee members unanimously agreed to invite Secretary of State Melanie Jolie and Secretary of State for Intergovernmental Affairs Dominique LeBlanc for another question.
The Commission also invites Secretary of Public Security Marco Mendicino, Canadian electoral representatives, and representatives of national security agencies, including the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Agency.
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Most of the witnesses the committee intends to hear from have already participated in its study of allegations of foreign interference in the 2019 election, which began in November.
The Globe and Mail reported on Friday that China deployed a “sophisticated strategy” in the 2021 election to defeat Conservative candidates and attempt to support the federal Liberals towards a minority government, citing national security memos.
That report followed months of exclusive reporting by Global News into allegations of attempted Chinese interference, starting with a Nov. 7, 2022, report that Canadian intelligence officials had warned Trudeau that China has allegedly been targeting Canada with a vast campaign of foreign interference, including through the funding of a clandestine network of at least 11 federal candidates running in the 2019 election, according to Global News sources.
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On Dec. On February 21, 2022, Global News reported that an unredacted 2020 national security document was alleged by Beijing to cover up financial flows between Chinese officials and Canadian members of an election interference network. It reportedly claimed to have used an extensive network of community groups. Advancing his own political agenda at the 2019 Commonwealth Congress. Inflation appears to be subdued, except for grocery stores. what happened?
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And on his Feb. 8, 2023 Global News, more than a year before the 2019 federal elections, national security officials drafted a warning against Trudeau and his office that Chinese agents were ” We are supporting Canadian candidates.” Privy Council documents reviewed by Global News.
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The lawmaker agreed last year to investigate allegations that China tried to interfere in her 2019 federal election, according to an initial Global News report. The inquiry is for the 2021 election after Tuesday’s widening.
Since November, the Commission has heard a number of witnesses on the issue, including Jolie, LeBlanc, David Mulroney, the former Canadian Ambassador to China, the Canadian Electoral Commission, CSIS, and RCMP officials.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday that China is trying to interfere in Canadian democracy “including our elections.”
However, in an interview with The West Bloc on Sunday, Mendicino said the independent panel tasked with reviewing the integrity of the 2019 and 2021 elections had been dissuaded by CSIS and others from recent media reports. He refused to say whether he had seen documents from the agency.
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Under the Federal Protocol, a public announcement is made when a panel of senior officials determines that an incident, or series of incidents, threatens Canada’s ability to hold free and fair elections.
No such announcement was made for the 2021 or 2019 elections. In both cases, the Liberals remained in power with minority seats while the Conservatives formed the official opposition.
At Tuesday’s committee meeting, Conservative MPs accused Trudeau and the Liberal Party of lacking transparency about the threats they face in the election.
“The prime minister lacked transparency,” Rep. Michael Cooper told the committee, adding that Trudeau used “carefully crafted language” to cover up what happened. Read on:
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Later in the session, Cooper presented a page of his CSIS report, which was believed to have been intentionally left blank by the government, and that committee chairman Bardish told Chugger that the Commons proceedings prompted a reminder of the rules prohibiting props in
The Liberal Party, on the other hand, called for a bipartisan approach to move forward.
Jennifer O’Connell, parliamentary secretary to the secretary of state for intergovernmental affairs, has warned Conservative MPs that politicizing the issue could harm Canada’s democratic institutions.
“This is a Trump-like tactic to call into question the outcome of the election,” O’Connell said in response to Tory allegations that the government was keeping the public ignorant of the election interference that took place.
— Using her Irelyne Lavery from Global News and her Canadian Press files
© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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