Some MPs help foreign actors like China and India meddle in Canadian politics: report

A shocking new report from one of Canada’s intelligence watchdogs says some members of parliament are “knowingly” helping foreign governments like China and India meddle in Canadian politics.

Last year, Parliament’s National Security and Intelligence Committee, which includes MPs and senators from across the political spectrum, was asked to investigate allegations of foreign interference in Canadian elections.

Their heavily redacted report, tabled in the House of Commons on Monday, highlighted “particularly disturbing” behavior by some MPs.

The report indicated that some elected officials “began knowingly assisting foreign entities shortly after their election.”

In one case, NSICOP members stated that they had received intelligence suggesting that parliamentarians, on behalf of India, were seeking to influence their colleagues and were actively passing confidential information to Indian officials.

In another case cited in the report – based on information from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) provided to NSICOP – a then-Member of Parliament had a relationship with a foreign intelligence official. The public report did not specify the officers’ country of origin.

According to CSIS, the MP attempted to arrange a meeting abroad with a senior intelligence official and actively provided him with confidential information, according to the report.

The report indicated that China believes it has something for something relations with some lawmakers who will engage with the Chinese Communist Party in exchange for Beijing mobilizing its extensive networks in their favor.

NSICOP said it also received intelligence suggesting that unnamed parliamentarians:

• Frequently communicated with foreign missions before or during political campaigns to obtain support from community groups or businesses to be mobilized by diplomatic missions;
• Accepted knowingly or through willful blinding of funds or benefits from foreign missions or their proxies that have been layered or otherwise disguised to conceal their source;
• Provided foreign diplomatic officials with confidential information about the work or opinions of other parliamentarians, knowing that such information would be used by those officials to improperly pressure parliamentarians to change their positions;
• Responded to requests or instructions from foreign officials intended to improperly influence fellow parliamentarians or parliamentary matters to the advantage of a foreign country; AND,
• Information provided in confidence by a government to a known foreign intelligence official.

NSICOP said some of the cases of foreign interference it investigated may have involved illegal activity but were unlikely to result in criminal charges “due to Canada’s failure to address the long-standing issue of protecting classified information and methods in legal processes.”

“No matter what, all of this behavior is deeply unethical and, in the committee’s view, contrary to the oaths and assurances given by parliamentarians that they behave in the best interests of Canada,” the report says.

Trudeau government’s slow response ‘major failure’

The report also took aim at the Liberal government, which, according to the commission, had known since 2018 that it needed to take foreign interference more seriously.

“The slow response to a known threat was a serious failure, the consequences of which Canada may feel for years to come,” he said.

“The consequences of this inaction include undermining the democratic rights and fundamental freedoms of Canadians, the integrity and credibility of the parliamentary process in Canada, and public confidence in the policy decisions made by the government.”

Monday’s report marks the third time NSICOP has reviewed the government’s response to threats of foreign interference since 2018 and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s trip to India – something members mention in their latest report.

“Given the risks posed by foreign interference in Canada’s national security, the committee expected the government to take action. He did it slowly,” the report says.

“In the committee’s assessment, this delay contributed in part to the crisis the government found itself in at the turn of 2022 and 2023.”

The commission says Canada’s security and intelligence community is held back by outdated tools and regulations.

“Gaps in these areas limit the ability of security and intelligence agencies to act, particularly in sharing information with law enforcement agencies to enable investigations, bring charges or support prosecutions,” the report says.

The report also found that the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) was unable to share “significant information” with entities outside the federal government, such as parliamentarians and other government bodies.

“These gaps contribute to a situation in which there is little meaningful deterrence against foreign states and their Canadian mandates to engage in interfering activities,” the report says.

The government disagrees with elements of the NSICOP report

Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said the government will consider NSICOP’s findings and recommendations, but disagrees with elements of the report.

“The government’s concerns center around the interpretation of intelligence reports, which lacked necessary intelligence-specific qualifications, and the failure to recognize the full scope of efforts taken to inform parliamentarians about the threat posed by foreign interference,” he said on Monday afternoon.

The NSICOP report makes six recommendations to the federal government. It calls on Ottawa to update the CSIS Act, develop consistent definitions and action thresholds for foreign interference, and begin annual briefings on foreign interference to parliamentarians.

Last month, the federal government introduced Bill C-70, which aims to limit foreign interference in Canadian politics. It would introduce new foreign interference offenses, change how CSIS seeks warrants, update the rules on which CSIS can report, and launch the long-awaited Foreign Influence Transparency Registry.

“Canada is only now beginning to introduce additional measures to address activities related to foreign interference,” NSICOP states.

The commission was created in 2017 to provide parliamentary oversight of Ottawa’s intelligence operations, including CSIS, the RCMP, Global Affairs Canada and the Communications Security Facilities (CSE).

Lawmakers and senators who serve on the committee are given security clearances that allow them to see and hear details of the agency’s top-secret activities.

The committee includes three Liberal MPs, two Conservatives, one NDP member, one Bloc Québécois member and three senators.

Last month, a public inquiry into foreign interference found that attempts by other countries to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 general elections did not determine which party formed the government.

“Nevertheless, the acts of interference that occurred stain our electoral process and affected the process leading to the actual vote,” Judge Marie-Josée Hogue wrote in her preliminary report.