Government Report Provides Roadmap on Tackling Foreign Interference

A report to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau outlines steps the federal government is taking to address foreign interference after media reports in recent months have alleged extensive meddling by Beijing. The most consequential steps announced include beginning work to update key pieces of legislation to better tackle foreign interference. The plan says Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino will work to modernize the CSIS Act to improve the collecting of intelligence, as well as the Security of Information Act and the Criminal Code to facilitate prosecution. Trudeau had announced on March 6 his government would develop a plan to address foreign interference within 30 days, as pressure for action was building, and said it would be based on the recommendations made in previous reviews. The report was presented on April 5 by Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc and Clerk of the Privy Council Janice Charette. It says LeBlanc is currently working on amendments to the Canada Elections Act that would address foreign interference. “Our government continues to identify, address and respond to the evolving nature of threats against Canada’s democracy,” said LeBlanc in a statement. “Significant progress has been made to implement the recommendations from the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians [NSICOP] and the Protocol evaluation reports.” The NSICOP recommendations refer to its 2018 and 2019 reports, while the Protocol reports refer to work recently conducted by Morris Rosenberg regarding the 2021 election and by Jim Judd for the 2019 election. A key takeaway the federal government took from the four reports is that they all “point out that equipping citizens with knowledge is the best defence against those who try to meddle in Canada’s democratic processes.” Rosenberg, a former public servant and executive of the Trudeau Foundation, submitted his report in late February and said that several elements of the Critical Election Incident Public Protocol had worked well. The Protocol is a mechanism established by the Trudeau government in 2019 to communicate with Canadians during elections about incidents that threaten the integrity of the vote. But Rosenberg identified improving communications in several of his recommendations. “The Privy Council Office will develop a strategy to better communicate with Canadians about the Protocol and how it fits within the suite of measures to counter foreign interference and protect democratic institutions,” says the report in response to a Rosenberg recommendation. The two NSICOP Annual Report 2019 recommendations on foreign interference were addressed by the government by highlighting its recent creation of the National Counter Foreign Interference Coordinator under Public Safety Canada. NSCIOP said Canada should “develop a comprehensive strategy to counter foreign interference and build institutional and public resiliency,” and the report says the new coordinator will play a “leading role” in that regard. The report said most recommendations had been addressed or would be, but some were also shot down. Jim Judd, a former CSIS director, had recommended that the Protocol cover the pre-writ period, or the period prior to an election being called. The report says this was not implemented “since ministers already have the responsibility and the necessary powers to address any concerns about foreign interference that could arise between elections.” National security leaks in the press in recent months have alleged that the Trudeau government has ignored previous warnings from CSIS about Liberal Party members working on behalf of the Chinese regime. These revelations led to opposition parties calling for a public inquiry, but the Liberals have instead announced a number of measures, including the appointment of former governor general David Johnston as special rapporteur to evaluate Canada’s response to the threat. Trudeau said Johnston could eventually make a recommendation to hold a public inquiry, and in that case it would be followed. The federal government has also announced the launching of consultations to establish a foreign agents registry. The consultation period is set to end May 9. Meanwhile, two House of Commons committees that are studying foreign interference have heard testimony from various stakeholders in recent weeks. Appearing before the ethics committee, former CSIS officer Michel Juneau-Katsuya recommended the creation of a brand new independent office with arrest powers to counter the threat. The committee also heard from former CSIS executive Dan Stanton who said foreign interference has eclipsed traditional espionage as a threat. The Procedure and House Affairs Committee is currently waiting to hear testimony from Trudeau’s Chief of Staff Katie Telford and is seeking to learn exactly at which point in time Trudeau and his office were briefed on foreign interference.