Canada Must ‘Do More’ to Counter Chinese Election Interference, Says Joly

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly speaks at the House of Commons in Ottawa in a file photo. The Canadian Press

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly says Canada must “do more” to prevent Chinese interference when asked by reporters what should be done about recent allegations that China meddled in the 2019 federal election.

“For the past two elections, we had a committee that was working on these very issues and also we strengthened our processes, but I think we need to do more,” Joly said after making an announcement on Canada’s upcoming new Indo-Pacific Strategy at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy in Toronto, Ont., on Nov. 9.

Joly also said the federal government “won’t let any foreign actor meddle in our democracy.”

“We need to make sure that we tackle foreign interference at home, but I would say also, particularly in the digital sphere.”

Joly’s comments come amid a Global News report published this week alleging that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was briefed by intelligence officials in January, who said the Chinese Communist Party had funded 11 unnamed federal candidates in the 2019 election.

“State actors from around the world, whether it’s China or others, are continuing to play aggressive games with our institutions, with our democracies,” Trudeau told reporters in Laval, Que., on Nov. 7 in response to the allegations.

He added that the federal government has implemented “significant measures to strengthen the integrity of our elections processes and our systems” and added that CSIS will be receiving “new tools” to monitor election interference.

‘Failed to Protect Our Democracy’

Joly also said on Nov. 9 that the federal government “will challenge China when we ought to,” but will “cooperate with China when we must.”

“Its sheer size and influence makes cooperation necessary to address the world’s existential pressures,” she said.

Conservative MPs yesterday called upon the federal government to be more proactive in defending Canada’s democracy against Chinese interference.

“It’s long past time for the Trudeau government to come forward with a robust plan to counter Beijing’s foreign interference operations here on Canadian soil,” wrote Conservative MPs Michael Chong and Pierre Paul-Hus in a statement on Nov. 8.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said in a press conference today that Trudeau “has failed to protect our democracy.”

“I think it’s very troubling that the prime minister has known about allegations of foreign interference in Canadian elections since last January and he hasn’t taken any action,” Poilievre told reporters in Vancouver, B.C., on Nov. 9.

The House of Commons Procedure and House Affairs Committee will hold an emergency meeting to investigate the allegations of Chinese election interference and Trudeau’s knowledge of it after six MPs signed and submitted a meeting request on Nov. 9.

The committee will meet sometime within the next five days, as per House rules.