Canada’s intelligence agency is under pressure after Justin Trudeau and his closest advisers said they were never informed of a report that Beijing “secretly and fraudulently” intervened in both the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.
Canada is in the middle of a contentious public inquiry “investigating and assessing” foreign interference by China, Russia and other foreign states and non-state actors, and this week Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified under oath about the steps his government took from it to respond to the threat of interference. During his appearance, which lasted almost four hours, Trudeau emphasized that despite the efforts of hostile states, the previous federal elections “had been held with their integrity.”
“[The elections] were decided by Canadians,” Trudeau said.
But he questioned the reliability of information collected by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) that has underpinned media coverage of Beijing’s alleged interference efforts. Trudeau also said the information was contained in a 2023 briefing note – which said China’s interference efforts were “pragmatic in nature” and focused primarily on supporting those who took a pro-Beijing stance or on issues that were of interest to the Chinese government, were “neutral” – were never passed on to him or his employees.
Related: China interfered in Canada’s last two elections, says Justin Trudeau
His comments contrasted with testimony from CSIS Director David Vigneault, who told the commission that the warnings in the agency’s reports – including the advice that the government should “take decisive action and impose consequences on perpetrators” – were the closest the Prime Minister’s circle had been passed on.
CSIS also warned that foreign interference in Canada will continue until it is “viewed as an existential threat” to the country’s democracy and governments respond “vigorously.”
But neither key staff nor the prime minister himself remembered these warnings.
These discrepancies led to the head of CSIS being recalled to testify before the commission again.
On Friday, Vigneault told the commission’s lawyers that he may not have mentioned certain points in the briefing notes, but that he had passed on those warnings to the administration on other occasions, including the idea that enemy nations were using election interference as an undertaking with “low risk and high reward” .
Vigneault added that his agency’s method of briefing officials is “not just one method and one person” to ensure key figures are brought up to speed.
Speaking to reporters after his statement, the prime minister deepened the rift between his government and the spy agency over the veracity of CSIS reports, suggesting that “no government, no leader” can be “simply a passive recipient” of information and intelligence should.
“We have a role to play in asking questions, in thinking critically… encouraging further work to question sources and resolve contradictions,” he said. “This is actually an essential part of the work that we all need to do to ensure that everything is done to keep Canadians safe.”
Topics included reports that CSIS had warned the Liberal Party about possible Chinese interference in Han Dong’s nomination in Toronto.
“I did not feel that there was enough or sufficiently credible information to justify this very important step, which was to remove a candidate,” Trudeau said.
The prime minister himself has come under fire from political opponents after telling the commission that he had not read the briefing notes, preferring instead to share key information in person or over a secure line from his national security adviser or senior intelligence officials, including Vigneault , to obtain.
“If there is indeed a risk of manipulation by hostile and malicious actors, such as a communist regime in Beijing, he cannot even take responsibility for reading his briefing notes,” said Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.
Beijing has previously denied all allegations of interference in Canadian affairs and an embassy spokesman said Trudeau had “slandered” China during the investigative hearing.
The commission, overseen by Quebec Court of Appeal Judge Marie-Josée Hogue, will complete an initial report by May 3 and submit its final report by the end of 2024.