Liberals Introduce Legislation on Foreign Influence Registry, Increased Powers for CSIS

Minister of Public Safety Dominic LeBlanc speaks in the Foyer of the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, on March 20, 2024. The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby

The Liberal government is introducing legislation to combat foreign interference by establishing a foreign influence transparency registry and increasing criminal penalties for foreign meddling.

“Canada is a strong, open, and free democracy. These strengths, however, can make Canada a target for those who wish to advance their interests to the detriment of our own,” Minister of Public Safety Dominic LeBlanc told reporters on May 6.

An Act Respecting Countering Foreign Interference, or Bill C-70, which the Liberal government introduced in the House of Commons, will create new foreign interference offences and a sabotage offence around conduct directed at essential infrastructure.

According to a media briefing, the present CSIS Act will be modified to allow the agency to disclose sensitive information to non-federal partners in order to “build resistance against threats.” The act will also be amended to increase the range of warrant powers and the ability to collect foreign intelligence within Canada.

The Security of Information Act, which acts as the primary legislation addressing foreign interference, will be modified to include three new offences: general foreign interference against Canada; committing an indictable offence on behalf of a foreign entity such as bribery, extortion, or visa fraud; and interfering with Canada’s democratic process such as in elections and political parties.

Canada’s Criminal Code will be changed to strengthen the legal response to acts of sabotage. A new sabotage offence will be created around essential infrastructure, a new offence of making and distributing a device to commit a sabotage offence will be introduced, and the intention required for a sabotage offence will be clarified.

The Criminal Code will also clarify that the sabotage offences do not apply to “legitimate advocacy, protest or dissent” in circumstances where protesters do not intend to cause the harms specified in the legislation.

The Canada Evidence Act, which regulates the handling of sensitive information in legal proceedings, will be modified to establish a new federal administrative proceedings system that allows judges to consider sensitive information while safeguarding it from public disclosure.

Foreign Influence Registry

The legislation will also create foreign influence transparency, requiring those who act on behalf of a foreign state to disclose their ties to the government employing them. Influence activities would relate to entities that influence policy developments, legislative body proceedings, decision-making by public office holders, and the holding of elections or referendums.

Countries like the United States and Australia have foreign influence registries, but Canada has been slow to establish one. Following reports in 2023 of foreign interference in Canada’s last two elections, the Conservatives and NDP repeatedly called for a registry to be created.

Mr. LeBlanc said the government hopes to work with Opposition parties to pass the legislation. “Our hope is they'll work with us so we can put it in place, but we want Parliament to be able to do its work,” adding, “we intend to proceed quickly.”

The announcement comes days after the Foreign Interference Commission released its initial report, which found that countries had interfered in Canada’s 2019 and 2021 elections. Justice Marie-Josée Hogue, commissioner of the inquiry, said the interference had not changed the overall results of the last two elections.

However, she said the interference had undermined Canadians’ faith in democracy and reduced their trust in the democratic process. “Foreign interference in 2019 and 2021 undermined the right of voters to have an electoral ecosystem free from coercion or covert influence,” she wrote in her report.