Government Accountability

Canadian Press: National security adviser defends cabinet confidence in foreign meddling probe

The opposition demanded the meeting to ask questions about the redactions and what else the government hasn't handed over.

"The commission is now asking for the unredacted cabinet documents in order to assist them with their work," NDP MP Jenny Kwan said.

"So if the commissioner is asking for this, if they did not feel that it was important to fulfil their mandate, they wouldn't ask for it."

Kwan said a big part of Hogue's mission is to determine what the government knew about foreign interference, when it knew about it and what it did to respond. She questioned why it wasn't up to the commissioner to decide what was relevant.

CPAC VIDEO: Scrum on June 19, 2024

SCRUMS
Canada's Population, Caribou Protection – June 19, 2024

Immigration Minister Marc Miller is asked about Statistics Canada's new numbers about Canada's population, which has now surpassed 41 million people in the first quarter of 2024.

Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault and NDP deputy leader Alexandre Boulerice respond to questions about the federal government's plan to protect boreal caribou in Quebec.

NDP MP Jenny Kwan discusses the government's response to foreign interference concerns. (no interpretation)

Parliament VIDEO: Citing MPs privilege and calls on Parliament to identify those cited in NSICOP report

HANSARD: Foreign Interference and Alleged Reputational Harm to Members of Parliament

Outside this chamber, just yesterday, there were individuals shouting, questioning and jeering about who the traitors may be. Members of Parliament had to walk past these individuals on the members' way to the House to do their work. I believe we must find a way to disclose which MPs are knowingly, intentionally, wittingly or semi-wittingly engaging with foreign states or their proxies to undermine Canada's democratic processes and institutions. I believe this can be done in a way that does not compromise national security.

If there are no consequences for MPs who knowingly help foreign governments act against Canadian interests, we will continue to be an easy target. This will further erode the trust and faith Canadians have in our democratic processes. If allowed to continue, it will further impugn the integrity of the House. Revealing any member of Parliament, former or present, who is a willing participant in foreign interference activities would have the effect of deterring this kind of behaviour. Moreover, it would send a clear message to those foreign states that this cannot continue and that they will not be able to continue to use parliamentarians in this way. This will further reassure the public of the integrity of the House.

I strongly believe that the House should refer the matter to the procedure and House affairs committee. A possible way to deal with the issue would be for committee members to undergo the necessary security screening to examine the unredacted report and look into the allegations about parliamentarians who were “‘witting or semi-witting’ participants in the efforts of foreign states to interfere in our politics.” We could allow the named parliamentarians to be informed and to come before the committee as witnesses; we could then explore options on how to disclose the named parliamentarians without compromising national security or police investigations of the matter.

CBC: NDP MP says interference report has cast suspicion on all MPs, calls on House to release names

An NDP MP is calling on the House of Commons to find a way to release the names of the MPs implicated in a foreign interference report released earlier this month.

Jenny Kwan raised a question of privilege in the House on Tuesday, suggesting that the report from the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) had damaged the reputation of all sitting members.

That report alleged, based on intelligence reports, that some parliamentarians have been "semi-witting or witting" participants in the efforts of foreign states to interfere in Canadian politics. The unredacted version of the report did not specifically name any MP.

Kwan said that while the names of the MPs identified in the report remain secret, Canadians will lose trust in their elected officials.

"The report did not provide any names and as such all 338 members of this House, including those who have since left this chamber, are under a cloud of suspicion," Kwan said Tuesday.

She said the matter should be referred to the House procedures committee to explore possible ways of releasing the names from the report without compromising national security.

"In the face of such alarming revelation without knowledge of who the elected official is associated with each allegation, it means that all members are tainted and that the reputation of the whole House is put in question," Kwan said.

The Conservatives have been pressing the Liberals to release the names of the MPs in the report. But Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc has insisted that it would violate national security law, even suggesting that he could be arrested for revealing top secret information.

RCMP Deputy Commissioner Mark Flynn confirmed during a House committee meeting on Tuesday that if a government minister were to release the names of MPs in the NSICOP report, they would be charged with a crime.

 

Globe NEWS: NDP MP Kwan calls on Parliament to identify MPs implicated in foreign interference

New Democratic MP Jenny Kwan called on the House of Commons Tuesday to find a way to publicly name the politicians identified in a secret report as being compromised by hostile foreign states, saying the revelations have left all parliamentarians under a cloud of suspicion.

Ms. Kwan raised a question of privilege in the Commons, telling Speaker Greg Fergus that the only way to stop MPs and senators from betraying their country is to disclose their names.

A report earlier this month from the National Security Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP), an oversight body set up by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2017, revealed that some current and former parliamentarians have been unwittingly or wittingly collaborating with foreign states. NSICOP did not name the politicians in the redacted report released to the public.

“I believe we must find a way to disclose who are the MPs knowingly, intentionally, wittingly or semi-wittingly engaging with foreign states or their proxies to undermine Canada’s democratic processes and institutions,” Ms. Kwan told the House.

Ms. Kwan, who the Canadian Security Intelligence Service last year revealed has been targeted by the Chinese government, argued that the matter should be referred to the Procedure and House affairs committee to figure out how to reveal the names without compromising national security.

“If there continues to be no consequences for MPs who knowingly help foreign governments act against Canadian interests, we will continue to be an easy target,” she said.

As it stands, Ms. Kwan said all 338 MPs, including those who left the House, are “under a cloud of suspicion,” which, she added, means that “all members are tainted and that the reputation of the whole House is put in question.”

Since the NSICOP report largely identified China and India as the main players in foreign interference, Ms. Kwan said Chinese-Canadian or Indo-Canadian MPs are at “heightened risk of unjust reputational damage.”

“Revealing which members of Parliament, former or present, is a willing participant of foreign interference activities would not only have the effect of deterring this kind of behaviour, it will send a clear message to those foreign states that they will not be able to continue to use parliamentarians in this way,” Ms. Kwan said.

 

CBC NEWS: Federal parties aligning on need for speed with anti-foreign meddling bill

In an interview on Rosemary Barton Live that aired Sunday, NDP MP Jenny Kwan — who says CSIS has told her she has been targeted by the Chinese government — said some amendments to the bill would be introduced, but that it did need to be in place before the next election.

"That process will unfold, but absolutely this law needs to be in place before the next election," Kwan told CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton.

The Bloc Québécois also told CBC News it would be putting forward some amendments to the legislation. The bill was unanimously sent forward to committee consideration late last month.

Bill C-70 would introduce new criminal provisions against deceptive or surreptitious acts, allow for the broader sharing of sensitive information and establish a foreign influence transparency registry.

HANSARD: Under What Circumstance is it Justifiable to Obstruct Parliament?

HANSARD: Statement on Liberals given free rein to big oil companies

Province: Opposition MPs demand answers on why security risks were allowed into Canada

OTTAWA – Opposition parties say the fact the government allowed half of foreign nationals red-flagged as security risks into the country between 2014 and 2019 is shocking and erodes Canadians’ trust in the immigration system.

“This is very concerning and undermines trust and confidence of Canada’s immigration process,” NDP MP and Immigration critic Jenny Kwan said in a statement Tuesday.

She was responding to a National Post report Tuesday morning that between 2014 and 2019, 46 per cent of foreign nationals flagged by security agencies to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for ties to serious offences such as war crimes, espionage and terrorism were allowed to take up residency in Canada.