Evidence of meeting #55 for Procedure and House Affairs in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was information.
A video is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Thank you very much.
On November 7, 2022, Sam Cooper of Global News reported that the Prime Minister and several cabinet ministers received “a series of briefings and memos” about “Beijing's efforts to...subvert Canada's democratic process”, including interfering in the 2019 election. Can you confirm that the Prime Minister was briefed about this?
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
The Prime Minister is briefed quite continuously on foreign interference.
Conservative
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
I asked a very specific question that was in regard to what Sam Cooper reported on November 7, 2022. Was the Prime Minister briefed?
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
What is the date you are asking about his briefing? You are telling me the date of the report, not the date of the briefing.
Conservative
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
Since January 2022, I will give you the dates on which we've briefed the Prime Minister formally. We also have informal discussions with him frequently about foreign interference and activities in the national security community.
Conservative
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Put it this way: Will you undertake to provide the dates on which the Prime Minister was briefed with respect to Sam Cooper's report of November 7, 2022?
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
I can't give you the dates on which the Prime Minister was briefed about media reports. I can tell you the dates on which he was briefed about foreign interference.
Conservative
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Okay. With that, how many times was the Prime Minister briefed about Beijing's interference in the 2019 and 2021 elections?
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
The Prime Minister would have been briefed on foreign interference in the elections multiple times between 2019 and 2021 and 2022. We will endeavour to get you those dates.
Conservative
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Okay, so you will undertake to provide the dates and the agencies and those involved in briefing the Prime Minister?
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
We will endeavour to get the dates.
Conservative
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Every instance that he was briefed in respect of Beijing's election interference....
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
I will do my best, but again, I was not in this job at the time.
Conservative
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Okay.
A redacted reported entitled “Daily Foreign Intelligence Brief”, dated February 21, 2020, from the intelligence assessment secretariat at PCO, provided to this committee in the production process, stated that there were—quote—“subtle but effective interference networks” by Beijing in the 2019 election and provides the following assessment: “Investigations into activities linked to the Canadian federal election in 2019, reveal an active foreign interference...network”.
On what date did the PCO share this information with the Prime Minister?
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
That information is widely circulated and is available in daily reading packages.
Conservative
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
It would have been in a daily reading package.
Conservative
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
In all likelihood, yes.
Liberal
Greg Fergus Liberal Hull—Aylmer, QC
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you to our witnesses for being here today.
Can you describe what “foreign interference” means to the national security and intelligence agencies? Here, we're talking about electoral interference, but I'm certain the definition is larger than that, and that it deals with academia, businesses and other aspects of society. Can you briefly outline what “foreign interference” means to your community?
National Security and Intelligence Advisor, Privy Council Office
I'm happy to.
Mr. Tupper is the deputy minister responsible for the agency, so perhaps he would like to weigh in.
Shawn Tupper Deputy Minister, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
It's a great question, because it is a complex web of activity. We very much take a whole-of-society approach to looking at foreign interference.
You noted a number of areas that we look at, such as democratic institutions. We look at the particular communities within the country to ensure we have an understanding of what's going on and of the kind of interference that may be occurring in diaspora communities. We pay attention to economic and national security issues in terms of attempts to disrupt our economy, so that might be looking at banks and the rules and regulations that surround and protect our financial institutions.
Certainly, on the international affairs side, we would have fairly comprehensive reporting and awareness of our activities and our partnerships with our allies to jointly work together.
Finally, we pay an inordinate amount of attention to our critical infrastructure. The disruption of the grids or of our pipelines would cause a massive disruption in our communities, so we pay a lot of attention to that.
Liberal
Greg Fergus Liberal Hull—Aylmer, QC
Thank you.
Is it fair to say that foreign interference is not new? Have governments taken steps towards this? Are they taking steps towards this? Are national security agencies involved in that process to try to combat foreign interference?
