Pam Damoff

[Elections Canada, November 18th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, this is the fourth question today, and the fifth day of questions, on foreign interference. The opposition seems to not recognize who is being attacked in this foreign interference. It is not this side of the House. It is not that side of the House. It is every single member in the House.

Foreign interference is meant to sow chaos. It is meant to destroy our democracy. We need to be standing together. I invite them to support cybersecurity legislation. I invite them to support the actions other ministers have taken when it comes to mining and other actions our government is—

[Elections Canada, November 18th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, I would like to just take a breath here and remember what is motivating foreign interference. Foreign interference is motivated by a desire to destroy the fabric of our democracy here in Canada. We are taking action by introducing legislation on cybersecurity. I hope the hon. member, who serves on the public safety committee, will assist our government in getting that legislation passed. We will always take protecting Canadian democracy seriously, and we will take every action, including legislative action, to make sure that happens.

[Elections Canada, November 18th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, foreign interference is a threat to the fabric of our democracy. We will continue to invest in our intelligence agencies, in CSIS, to ensure they have the resources they need to take action and ensure they are protecting the interest of Canadians. All members of the House should be standing side by side and standing up against foreign interference, and not implying things that were not said by the answers that are given. This is a problem for every member of the House. It is a problem for every Canadian.

[Elections Canada, November 18th, 2022]

Madam Speaker, as I have said in the House previously, Canada's fair and free elections process was never, ever compromised. It is not just me saying that. This was determined by an independent panel of national security experts. Let us remember that the only ones who benefit from foreign interference are enemies of democracy.

I am disappointed that the opposition members, for five days now, have continued to amplify the foreign-interference messaging in the House. We should be standing together to stand up to this attack on our democracy.

[Democratic Institutions, November 17th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, protecting Canada's democracy is something we take very seriously. On this side of the House and on that side of the House, we should all condemn foreign interference, because the ones who benefit are not in the House. They are enemies of democracy who are trying to damage our democratic process here in Canada. We will always stand up for democracy, and I invite all members of the House to stand with us.

[Democratic Institutions, November 17th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, let me be clear. Canada's fair and free election process was never compromised, and this was determined by an independent panel of national security experts. The only ones who benefit from foreign interference are enemies of democracy. These attacks are an attack on all members of Parliament, and we cannot afford to play partisan games on this issue.

[Questions on the Order Paper, November 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, Regarding the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and part (a) of the question, given its mandate and specific operational requirements, CSIS does not generally disclose details related to operational activity. With respect to part (b), given its mandate and specific operational requirements, CSIS does not generally disclose details related to operational activity. With regard to part (c), Canadians should never be subject to harassment or intimidation by foreign actors. As such, CSIS is committed to fulfilling its mandate to investigate threats to the security of Canada and the Canadian population. This includes any foreign influenced activity that is detrimental to the interests of Canada and are clandestine or deceptive, or involve a threat to any person. However, given its mandate and operational requirements, CSIS does not generally disclose details related to specific operational activity.

Regarding the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and part (a) of the question, in order for an international law enforcement agency to operate in Canada they must notify the INTERPOL national central bureau in Ottawa and seek approval under the foreign criminal investigators in Canada, or FCIC, protocol. This protocol sets out Canada’s notification and approval requirements for regulating the entry and monitoring of foreign criminal investigators pursuing foreign criminal investigations in Canada.

The FCIC protocol is aimed at safeguarding Canadian security, sovereignty and public interest, while ensuring adherence by foreign law enforcement and prosecution agencies to applicable Canadian policy and legislation, including the Criminal Code of Canada, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Privacy Act. As of October 17, 2022, there are currently no international law enforcement agencies operating in Canada under the FCIC protocol.

That said, the RCMP is aware of and is investigating allegations of unauthorized police presence in Canada. Since the investigation is ongoing, there will be no further comment on the matter at this time.

With regard to part (b), as noted in the answer for part (a), there are currently no international law enforcement agencies operating in Canada under the FCIC protocol. The RCMP is aware of and is investigating allegations of unauthorized police presence in Canada. Given the investigation is ongoing, there will be no further comment on the matter at this time.

With regard to part (c), as part of the RCMP’s international policing liaison officer program, the RCMP organizes regular briefings with foreign partners hosted in country to ensure they remain continuously abreast on Canadian laws and legal requirements.

In terms of actions taken, the RCMP works closely with domestic and international partners to counter any hostile activities by foreign states.

Foreign interference, or FI, entails foreign states, targeting Canada’s democratic institutions, economic systems and diaspora communities to advance their political, economic and security interests to the detriment of Canada’s.

The RCMP is mandated by legislation, under section 2 of the Security Offences Act and ministerial direction, to investigate threats to the security of Canada defined in section 2 of the CSIS Act, breaches of security defined in the Security of Offences Act, or SOA, and Security of Information Act, or SOIA, or any other criminal offence or any other federal statute or Criminal Code offence that may have a national security dimension. Further to this, the RCMP acts against FI threats that are criminal or illegal in nature, including acts involving the harassment, intimidation or coercion of individuals or groups within Canada.

The RCMP has several teams, units and efforts in place that contribute to disrupting FI. The RCMP also engages with the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police to help inform police of jurisdiction of FI threats and to establish mechanisms for reporting FI incidents. Federal policing participates in several interdepartmental efforts to combat FI, including the security and intelligence threats to elections, or SITE, task force, an initiative consisting of the RCMP, Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Communications Security Establishment and Global Affairs Canada, or GAC. FP also participates in the GAC-led rapid response mechanism, a G7 initiative established in 2018 that seeks to strengthen coordination across the G7 in identifying, preventing and responding to threats to G7 democracies.

It is important for all individuals and groups living in Canada, regardless of their nationality, to know that there are support mechanisms in place to assist them when experiencing harassment and intimidation. Anyone who feels threatened online or in person, should report these incidents to their local police. If someone in the public is in immediate danger, they should call 911 or contact their local police. Individuals may also contact the RCMP national security information network by phone at 1-800-420-5805 or by email at [e-mail]. Service is available in Canada’s both official languages.

[Questions on the Order Paper, November 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, the government has strong measures in place to ensure Iran and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, are held accountable for their support of terrorism, including some of the toughest and most comprehensive sanctions in the world.

Within the last month an additional 42 individuals and 12 entities were announced to be sanctioned under the special economic measures Iran regulations, or SEMA, in addition to the 202 previously listed Iranian entities and individuals. These measures prohibit dealings related to the listed individuals and entities, some of whom have participated in or enabled gross human rights violations, including against Iranian women, and perpetuated disinformation activities to justify the Iranian regime’s repression and persecution of its citizens. The assets these individuals and entities may hold in Canada will be effectively frozen.

On October 7, 2022, the Prime Minister announced the intention to list the Iranian regime and its top leaders, more than 10,000 officers and senior members, as perpetually inadmissible to Canada for their engagement in terrorism and systemic and gross human rights violations, by pursuing a designation under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, or IRPA. This includes heads of state, high ranking officials of the IRGC, intelligence officials, senior public servants, diplomats and members of the judiciary.

In addition to these recent actions, Iran continues to be designated as a state supporter of terrorism under the State Immunity Act.

Moreover, the IRGC’s Quds Force continues to be listed as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code. In addition to the Quds Force, the government lists a number of terrorist entities under this regime that have benefited from its patronage and that have helped advance Iran’s interests and foreign policy. These include Hezbollah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Taliban Al-Ashtar Brigades, Harakat al-Sabireen and the Fatemiyoun Division. The Criminal Code sets out a terrorist listing regime to help prevent the use of Canada’s financial system to further terrorist activity and to assist in the investigation and prosecution of terrorist offences.

The assessment process for listing a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code is one of continuous analysis to ensure that the process and tools used are rigorous and based on evidence, intelligence as well as domestic and international law.

The government pursues all the tools at its disposal and is working with like-minded countries to continue to keep pressure on Iran to cease its unlawful and terrorist behavior. The government is taking action to ensure that nobody who is responsible for Iran’s egregious actions can operate in Canada. Canadians can be confident in the work performed by our security agencies, which are alert to evolving threats and will not hesitate to take necessary action.

[Public Safety, November 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, the independence of our law enforcement is vital to our democracy, and I thank my colleague for his important advocacy and work on this issue and all issues related to public safety. Good government is essential for good policing. We will review his bill, and I look forward to continuing to work with him and all members of the House on the continued independence of the RCMP.

[Democratic Institutions, November 16th, 2022]

Mr. Speaker, I am disappointed that the hon. members do not want to hear the answer to that question.

Foreign interference is an attack on every single member of the House. It is an attack on the very fabric of our democracy. We must stand together. We must stand as one against any kind of foreign interference.

Our national security agencies continue to monitor and react to threats from foreign bad actors. Canadians expect us to work together on this and to stand united against foreign interference.