The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) informed the Hogue commission that a former parliamentarian was suspected of having worked to influence the work of Parliament on behalf of an unidentified foreign government.
In a document filed with the commission, CSIS also cited indications that an unspecified foreign government may have participated in interference to reduce a Liberal candidate’s chances of being elected.
CSIS suspects that the foreign government sought to thwart the election of the Liberal candidate because of his support for issues perceived as contrary to the interests of this country.
The federal intelligence agency describes these two cases as previously unknown to the public commission of inquiry into foreign interference in federal electoral processes and democratic institutions.
But SRCS provided no additional details about the countries or individuals involved in these allegations.
Suspicions concerning a “former parliamentarian” suspected of interference add grist to the mill of those who fear that a Canadian politician may have participated in foreign interference.
The Committee of Parliamentarians on National Security and Intelligence dropped a small bombshell last June by publishing a redacted version of a secret report. The committee asserts that certain parliamentarians “are, according to the intelligence services, half-willing or half-willing participants in the efforts of foreign states to interfere in the country’s politics.”
This assertion, both blunt and vague, sparked a wave of concern in Ottawa that parliamentarians knowingly involved in interference could still be active in politics in Canada.
The commission of inquiry, chaired by Judge Marie-Josée Hogue, is currently examining the ability of federal agencies to identify and counter foreign interference. A final report is expected by the end of the year.
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