Debates of March 6th, 2023

Democratic Institutions

[Peter Julian, NDP, New Westminster—Burnaby, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are very troubled about the allegations of foreign interference in our elections, but the Prime Minister does not seem concerned at all.

The former head of CSIS, the former head of Elections Canada and even Morris Rosenberg, who wrote the 2021 federal election report, are all encouraging the Prime Minister to go forward with a national public inquiry on foreign interference. PROC of the House of Commons has even adopted an NDP motion that the House may vote on soon, calling for a public inquiry as well.

Therefore, why is the Prime Minister so opposed? Why is he refusing to get answers for Canadians?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, our government is taking the issue of foreign interference in Canada's democratic institutions very seriously. As my colleague heard, our government has taken unprecedented steps since we formed the government in 2015 to put in place a series of measures precisely to provide greater transparency and understanding to Canadians on a threat that has existed for well more than 13 years, which has been publicly discussed for over a decade.

The good news is that our government takes it seriously. The good news is that the 2019 and 2021 elections were decided freely and fairly by Canadians.

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in a democratic society, few things are as crucial as the integrity of the electoral process and confidence in institutions.

There are serious allegations of interference, and it is this Prime Minister's responsibility to launch a public inquiry to get to the bottom of it. People deserve transparency. The former head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, or CSIS, along with a former chief electoral officer, former senior public servant Morris Rosenberg, and an NDP-led House of Commons committee are calling for a public inquiry.

Why is the Prime Minister saying no?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with my hon. colleague. It is important that Canadians have confidence in our democratic institutions.

We have taken the issue of foreign interference seriously since the moment we formed government. We have implemented a series of measures, including legislative measures, to ensure that our democratic institutions are protected from unacceptable interference.

As my hon. colleague well knows, we share his concern. The good news is that we will continue to do what is necessary.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we found out that CSIS uncovered a plan to influence the Prime Minister with a $200,000 donation to the Trudeau Foundation from agents of the communist regime in Beijing. The response was to blame CSIS. That is another page out of the playbook of divide, distract, deflect and deny, while the confidence in our democracy hits an all-time low.

The Prime Minister needs to end the cover-up and come clean with Canadians about what he knew and when he knew about it. The Prime Minister refuses. What is he hiding?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, as my hon. colleague, the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, has said, we take the threat of foreign interference very seriously, which is why we have taken concrete action, like putting in place threat reduction measures for CSIS and cracking down on foreign funding which could interfere with our domestic elections.

With corresponding transparency through the creation of bodies like the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians to ensure that we are up front with Canadians, all members should be united in protecting our elections. They are sacrosanct. Canadians, and Canadians alone, determine them.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the allegations of foreign interference are serious and they deserve a serious response from a serious Prime Minister. They need to be investigated and they need to be investigated by a credible, non-partisan and independent body. They need to be investigated by Parliament, not by Liberal insiders.

With the help of the NDP, the Prime Minister is refusing to send his chief of staff to committee. Again, what is he hiding?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, it was this government under the leadership of the Prime Minister that created the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians to encourage and foster collaboration across partisan lines, because this is an issue that transcends that dynamic. We will continue to shine a light on the threats that are posed by foreign interference so we can protect our democratic institutions, especially elections, because Canadians, and Canadians alone, must be reassured that they determine their elections and no one else.

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Mr. Speaker, for years, CSIS has tracked Beijing's foreign interference and has said, “foreign interference is a serious threat to the security of Canada.” For years, CSIS has advised the Prime Minister that “Canada can make use of a policy that is grounded in transparency and sunlight in order to highlight the point that foreign interference should be exposed to the public.”

Will the Prime Minister heed this advice, be transparent and let PMO officials testify before a parliamentary committee?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's question and I also embrace his concerns around transparency. This is a government that has raised the bar of transparency through the creation of NSICOP and through the creation of the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency, which both have robust access to classified information so we can be up front with Canadians in the ways in which we are protecting all of our institutions, especially elections.

As my colleague, the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, said, we have good news. Two independent panels have concluded that both of the elections in 2019 and 2021 were free and fair. We will continue this work together.

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Mr. Speaker, they concluded overall that they were free and fair.

Last election, the G7 rapid response mechanism in Global Affairs Canada tracked Chinese Communist Party interference targeting candidates like Kenny Chiu. Despite Global Affairs tracking interference in real time during the election, nothing was done. Kenny Chiu was not informed. Clearly, the critical election incident protocol did not work.

Since the PMO had a hand in setting up this protocol, will the PMO let its officials testify in front of a committee in order to tell us why the protocol was set up the way it was?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, as my colleague knows, this government set up the SITE panel and the critical instant reporting protocol to ensure that independent, non-partisan, professional public servants would make decisions about which allegations of foreign interference would be disclosed. This is a process that has served our democracy well.

Now we will take the recommendations from Morris Rosenberg and work closely with the public service to implement them so we can build on the strong track record of this government, which remains vigilant and clear-eyed about fighting against the threats of foreign interference.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Prime Minister initially denied allegations of foreign interference in our elections by the communist regime in Beijing. He thought he could sweep the whole thing under the rug and people would move on, but that did not happen. Suddenly, all kinds of things were revealed in the papers, on Global News, in the Globe and Mail, and the revelations keep coming. Every day, we find out more about how the communist regime in Beijing interfered in our elections. While the PM looked the other way, the Trudeau Foundation returned $200,000 to a Chinese businessman.

Why is the Prime Minister refusing to launch a public inquiry into Beijing's interference in our elections?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, as my colleague clearly stated, our government took this matter seriously the moment we took office. My colleague across the way claims people looked the other way, but he knows that is not the case. As my colleague pointed out, there were threats over 10 years ago, and if his government had taken them seriously, it might have implemented robust measures like the ones we implemented specifically to counter this kind of unacceptable interference. We will keep doing what needs to be done to strengthen our institutions.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, if he wants to talk about the past, then let us talk about 2013. In front of a group of women gathered for a Liberal Party fundraiser, a person in the audience asked the Prime Minister what country he admired, other than Canada. He answered, and I quote: “There's a level of admiration I actually have for China. Their basic dictatorship is actually allowing them to turn their economy around on a dime.”

We will not take any lessons from the Liberal Party's past. The regime in Beijing employed a sophisticated strategy to disrupt the 2021 federal election through its diplomats and their proxies. That is what we learned from The Globe and Mail.

Why is he refusing to allow Katie Telford to testify before the committee?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague mentioned 2013. I thought he was going to say that that was when CSIS identified the potential threat of Chinese interference in our election. Who was the minister responsible for the integrity of democratic institutions in 2013? It was the current Leader of the Opposition. He did nothing in 2013 or in 2014. He did not do anything in 2015 either.

[René Villemure, Bloc, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there are two possibilities: Either Chinese authorities are interfering in our electoral system and we have to do everything in our power to stop them, or there is no interference and a commission of inquiry will help restore public trust in our electoral system. In any case, the best thing to do, or rather, the only thing we can do to ensure that the public continues to trust their institutions, is to launch an inquiry.

Under these circumstances, when will the government call an independent commission of public inquiry?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, as I said a few moments ago, since we formed government, we have acknowledged the threats of foreign interference in our democratic system, in our democratic institutions. That is why we amended the Canada Elections Act to prevent foreign contributions to our election campaigns. That is why we passed legislation, a bill, to create a committee in charge of overseeing the national security agencies, with representatives from all parties, including the Bloc Québécois, and we referred this important matter to those members.

[René Villemure, Bloc, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let us be serious. The Prime Minister must realize that he is sending the wrong message by refusing to create a commission of inquiry. What does he have to hide? What is he trying to protect? Who is involved and how?

Those kinds of questions are not the right message to send. The message should be that we will never let anyone interfere in our electoral system, and we will do everything in our power to prevent any foreign interference. To do that, we need an independent commission of public inquiry.

Will they set up an independent commission of public inquiry?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with my hon. colleague that we must work together to do whatever it takes to safeguard elections in Canada and our democratic institutions.

I have good news for him: That is exactly what our government has been doing since we came to power. We are always looking for advice on how to strengthen the robust measures that are already in place.

We will continue to do whatever it takes because we agree with my colleague that this interference is completely unacceptable.

[Marie-Hélène Gaudreau, Bloc, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs passed a motion calling for the creation of an independent commission of public inquiry on foreign interference in our elections.

The committee agreed with the Bloc Québécois proposal that the commission chair be appointed with the consent of all parties represented in the House. Why is that important? Because it must transcend partisan politics. What matters most is the absolute infallibility of the electoral system.

Will the government comply with the committee's request and create a commission of inquiry into foreign interference in elections?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with my hon. colleague that we must work together, as parliamentarians, precisely to counter foreign interference in our democratic institutions.

My colleague knows this very well because she sits on the parliamentary committee. I look forward to seeing her when I attend on Thursday.

We have been transparent with parliamentarians, but we have also introduced important measures to counter foreign interference. These measures are working very well.

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Globe and Mail reported, based upon a review of CSIS documents, that Beijing launched “an orchestrated machine” to help the Liberals in the 2021 election. In the face of these alarming revelations, Canadians deserve answers from the Prime Minister. What they do not deserve is a Prime Minister who obstructs, deflects and hides.

If the Prime Minister has nothing to hide, will he let his chief of staff testify before a committee, or is he going to double down on his cover-up?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, as my colleague has heard now on a number of occasions, we take these matters very, very seriously. We approach them very soberly, and that is why this government has put in place the authorities required for CSIS to both address and mitigate potential foreign interference.

That is why we have also created the requisite transparency for Canadians, including through the creation of NSICOP, NSIRA, and the independent panels, which have both examined the circumstances and the allegations around the 2019 and 2021 elections. Yes, both those elections were free and fair, but we will continue to do this work together.

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Conservatives have tried to bring the Prime Minister's chief of staff to testify at committee three times. The Liberals, with the support of the NDP, blocked that effort three times, despite scandalous reports that senior PMO officials had been briefed by CSIS about Beijing's interference and did nothing about it.

Is the Prime Minister shielding his chief of staff because he knows his PMO turned a blind eye to Beijing's interference?