Madam Chair, Ms. Blaney makes a very important point. One lesson from the public consultation on the registry was that there is fear of retaliation from within diaspora communities if they engage in any public discussion.
As we think through the next steps on consultation once we table the legislation involving the registry—and indeed once we continue to engage Canadians more broadly on the suite of other legislative reforms, which we may want to visit again—we do need to turn our minds to creating atmospheres that are safe and secure so that Canadians feel they can step forward, give their best advice and give their best feedback into this without being worried about being targeted, marginalized or stereotyped, which is the whole point of foreign interference.
It is critically important that we do create those conditions that will allow them to engage, so that we can bring them along in this discussion and build their trust and confidence.
The stakes are very high, Madam Chair. What's at risk here is our capacity to fight against foreign interference. To do that, we do need to bring along Canadians. That's our commitment.