MPs Urge Minister to Testify Regarding Alleged Withholding of Documents in Foreign Interference Inquiry.
Opposition MPs have united against the Liberals to demand the Public Safety Minister’s testimony regarding the government’s withholding of documents from the Foreign Interference Inquiry.
On May 28, MPs on the House of Commons Procedure and House Affairs Committee voted on a Tory motion.
In the end, NDP and Bloc MPs joined forces with the Tories to summon Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, along with representatives from the Privy Council Office (PCO) and the Foreign Interference Inquiry, for testimony.
Mr. Cooper’s motion referenced reporting by the Globe and Mail indicating that the cabinet is “withholding an undisclosed number of documents requested by the Commissioner” and that nearly 10 percent of the documents provided by the cabinet are redacted.
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“Some documents contained redactions for Cabinet confidence, solicitor-client privilege, or protection of personal information,” as stated in the footnote. “Discussions regarding the application of these privileges are ongoing.”
The Epoch Times reached out to Public Safety, PCO, and the interference commission for comments but did not receive an immediate response.
“Justice Hogue will have full access to all relevant cabinet documents, as well as all other information she deems relevant for the purposes of her inquiry,” Mr. LeBlanc stated when announcing the inquiry last September.
“Does he agree that enough is enough with the secrecy?” Mr. Therrien asked.
“He knows very well that we are committed to sharing cabinet information with the commission,” Mr. LeBlanc responded. “We will always be available to collaborate with the commission to ensure access to all appropriate documents.”
Duff Conacher, co-founder of Democracy Watch, expressed that since security agencies provided unredacted documents to the commission, the cabinet should follow suit.
“If the Trudeau Cabinet continues to conceal records from the inquiry into foreign interference, Canadians are justified in assuming that the disclosure of these records could reflect negatively on the Cabinet, which is why they are being kept confidential,” Mr. Conacher conveyed to The Epoch Times via email.
He added that the secrecy impedes the commissioner from “determining who knew what, when they knew it, and what they did.”
The commission was established in September after extensive negotiations between parties on the inquiry’s terms of reference and the selection of a commissioner. This followed initial reluctance by the Liberal government to conduct an inquiry and the resignation of special rapporteur on foreign interference David Johnston.
The inquiry’s mandate focuses on interference by China, Russia, and other state and non-state actors, with primary attention on China so far.
“Based on intelligence gathered by Canada’s intelligence agencies, the People’s Republic of China (‘PRC’) emerges as a significant foreign interference actor against Canada,” Ms. Hogue’s report states.
The report clarifies that Canadian intelligence agencies did not detect Russian interference in the 2019 or 2021 general elections.
The commissioner concluded in her interim report that foreign interference did not impact the national election results in 2019 and 2021, although individual ridings may have been affected.
“I nonetheless determine that foreign interference influenced the overall election environment in 2019 and 2021,” she noted.
The commission is required to present a final report before the end of the year.
