(OTTAWA) The federal government says the Election Security and Intelligence Threats Task Force will closely monitor next month’s four by-elections for foreign interference.
The voters of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce – Westmount, Oxford, Portage – Lisgar and Winnipeg South Center will elect their MPs on June 19.
The task force’s mandate is to provide assessments of threats of foreign interference to a committee of deputy ministers, who brief cabinet members as needed.
The task force must also prepare two reports — one confidential and the other public — on any attempted interference in the by-elections.
The moves come amid growing concerns over allegations that China tried to influence the last two federal elections, and accusations that Beijing tried to intimidate members of parliament and their families.
Conservative MP Michael Chong is due to testify Tuesday night before a House of Commons committee about a Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) report saying a Chinese diplomat tried to intimidate him because of his position about China’s human rights record.
Chong told the House of Commons that Jody Thomas, national security adviser to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, told him that the 2021 CSIS report had been forwarded to the Privy Council Office and relevant departments.
But Mr. Trudeau and several other ministers said they were unaware of the report until The Globe and Mail wrote about it.
The Prime Minister has tasked former Governor General David Johnston with determining the next steps the government should take to fight foreign interference.
Johnston has until May 23 to inform the government of his conclusion on whether a public inquiry or any other form of investigation will be required.