The notes of the meeting show that while the premier wanted to know more so his government could respond with policies and legislation, the CSIS official explained his agency reported only to “one client”: the federal government.
Otherwise, CSIS was prohibited by law from disclosing classified intelligence, the official said. “The province doesn’t know what the province doesn’t know,” the official added, according to notes taken by the premier’s staff.
The meeting highlighted what some see as a critical weakness in Canada’s fight against foreign interference: although provincial and municipal governments are key targets of China, they are not in the intelligence loop.
City TV NEWS: Rally outside Vancouver college protests sudden termination of key English program
Dozens of students and instructors gathered at Vancouver Community College (VCC) Tuesday to protest the unexpected shutdown of the Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) program.
LINC, which has helped thousands of immigrants learn English, secure jobs, and work toward citizenship, is set to be terminated at the end of March due to federal funding cuts.
The move has left over 800 students without a clear path forward and more than 30 instructors without jobs.
“We found out just before winter break, and this was the first opportunity to get people together to raise spirits, because people have been really down.” said Frank Cosco, president of the VCC Faculty Association.
