Procedure and House Affairs Committee on March 12th, 2020

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I'm going to pick up where Mr. Richards left off with Mr. Perrault. I'm going to ask a straightforward question. Would you agree with me that Elections Canada is non-partisan in nature and an independent body of Parliament?

[Stéphane Perrault]

That is the overriding consideration, and absolutely at all times we need to maintain the reality and perception of our non-partisan nature.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

How did we get to the point where Elections Canada paid $650,000 to social media influencers who were proven to act in a partisan nature from previous posts that they made on social media? Who made the decision to engage in that type of activity within Elections Canada, and why was there no vetting done of these influencers?

[Stéphane Perrault]

There are a number of elements here. I think I need to step back a bit to describe what the issue was that we were trying to resolve. In 2015, we had what I call a 30% gap in youth registration. There were 72% of first-time voters, aged 18 to 24, who were registered. This means that 28% did not get a voter information card, which gives them basic information about where and when to vote. That is a big challenge and I think it's critical for us to make sure that all Canadian voters have that basic information. In the lead-up to this election, there was discussion on how to address this and we decided to have a pre-writ campaign, a segment of which was going to involve the use of those influencers.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

How are these influencers vetted? That's my question. I know there was a gap and I know that the mandate of Elections Canada is to engage Canadians. I get that. The $650,000 was spent on these social media influencers who clearly had a partisan bias in their history. My question is this: Who made the decision and why weren't they vetted?

[Stéphane Perrault]

We did work with a private ad company that provided—

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

What was the name of the ad company?

[Stéphane Perrault]

I think it's Adcart but I want to make sure.

Ultimately, I'm accountable for that. The ad company is not accountable. We did ask them to clearly and carefully vet all the influencers and I asked my team to do the same. Obviously, that vetting did not perform to my satisfaction.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Was the ad company paid?

[Stéphane Perrault]

We did not pay $200,000 to the ad company that would otherwise have been paid. They agreed not to ask for that money in their own fees. The only thing that was paid were out-of-pocket expenses for the production and mostly the money given to the influencers themselves.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

What was the name of the ad company again?

[Stéphane Perrault]

Ultimately, it's my accountability.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Right. Could you provide that to the committee?

[Stéphane Perrault]

I can provide it to the committee.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Where are they based?

[Stéphane Perrault]

I'll provide that, but it is my accountability; it's not their accountability.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Would you consider doing this type of campaign again?

[Stéphane Perrault]

I want to be clear on that. This is not part of our playbook moving forward. We have no plans. In fact, I do plan not to have that moving forward.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

The second question I want to ask is related to a fundraising event in New York City with the now Minister of Indigenous Services, Marc Miller. It happened on October 10, 2019. My understanding is that he was in New York City for business and that there was a fundraiser for an election campaign. However, in his disclosure to Elections Canada, there's no mention of any contributions made from any Canadian living in New York, nor any contributions over $200.

Does this seem odd to you?

[Stéphane Perrault]

His return is being audited as we speak. If there's an anomaly, as in any case when we see something that warrants the commissioner's attention, we involve the commissioner.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Just to confirm, his return is being audited at this point. Is that correct?

[Stéphane Perrault]

My answer is a generic one because I do not comment on specific cases. Whenever we see something that warrants review that goes beyond the nature of an audit, then it's the role of the commissioner. I should mention that he also, on his own initiative of course, is aware sometimes of circumstances or receives complaints and he will decide whether an investigation is warranted. It's his decision, not mine.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Thank you.

Madam Chair, I am asking that the commissioner table to the committee the name of the ad company, where they're located and exactly how much they were paid.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ruby Sahota]

Mr. Alghabra.

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Mississauga Centre, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you all.

Mr. Perrault, good to see you. Thank you for being here. I want to thank you and your entire team across the country. Elections Canada is the guardian of democracy, and it's very important that you continue to maintain public confidence in what you're doing. We're all grateful for the work you do.

I want to give you the opportunity to talk about what happened in the last election. There was an issue of election day falling on a Jewish holiday. I'd like to give you the opportunity to explain what happened and also discuss, moving forward, what your plans are in dealing with the potential conflict of holidays, especially in our increasingly multicultural country.