Cory Morgan: As Committee Says Some Parliamentarians ‘Witting’ Participants in Foreign Interference, the Good of the Nation Must Come First

The Peace Tower on Parliament Hill is pictured from the West Gate in Ottawa on May 6, 2024. (The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick)

Commentary

The foreign interference issue in Canada transcends partisanship as it’s crucial to ensure citizens don’t lose trust in democratic institutions.

A report released by the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) was damning as it stated foreign interests have compromised numerous parliamentarians, noting that in some cases, the MPs and senators were “witting” participants in foreign interference. The seriousness of this issue can’t be overstated. Some people at the highest levels of power in Canada act in the interests of other states and continue to maintain their political roles while citizens don’t know who they are.

Only full transparency and the public exposure of these actors can stop the growing mistrust between citizens and elected officials. As long as the identity of the compromised parliamentarians remains hidden, every single senator and member of Parliament will be considered a suspect in the eyes of the public. This is unfair to the parliamentarians who are innocent and unfair to the citizens who have a right to know if their representatives can be trusted.

The report was released to the office of the prime minister in March. Intelligence reports have been warning Canadians of this problem for years. Now that the parliamentary committee that reports to the prime minister has confirmed the security breaches, action must happen sooner rather than later.

No party wants to admit that one or more of its members have been spying on behalf of foreign nations. But the interests of Canada must come before the interests of political parties on this issue. Every MP takes an oath of allegiance before assuming the role. The allegiance is to the institutions that the Crown represents and to conduct themselves in the best interests of the country, not their political party. MPs must be reminded of who they are supposed to serve and set aside party interests with this issue.

If a company has been the victim of embezzlement by one or more of its senior employees, it would surely embarrass the company. Despite that, though, a company would immediately act to remove those employees from their roles and ask authorities to lay charges. They wouldn’t sit in silence and allow the employees to continue their nefarious actions for fear of reputational damage to the company. If shareholders found out a company was protecting the identities and positions of criminals in senior positions, they wouldn’t stand for it. They might be upset that the finances were compromised in the first place, but would appreciate the company’s swift action to rectify the current situation and put controls in place to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

Through the parliamentary report, Canadians already know some MPs and senators have been compromised. That ship has sailed. What they need to know now is that the spies have been identified, isolated, and criminally charged if need be. Further secrecy only undermines public trust. A citizen must be able to trust their representative in Ottawa. Imagine having sensitive immigration issues that only your MP can address, but you fear your MP may be working for a government you had fled.

The lack of action on this issue is surely emboldening the countries seeking to influence Canadian parliamentarians. They see Canada as a soft touch where espionage will be covered up rather than exposed and prosecuted. A terrible precedent is being set.

Wesley Wark, a leading Canadian expert on intelligence and national security issues, has referred to what he read in the NSICOP report as “nausea-inducing” and a scenario of “textbook treason.”

The entire institution of democracy is based on the government maintaining the public trust. The foreign interference issue has festered for years and now has come to a head. It must be excised for the sake of the nation. If the parties unite in shining a light upon the guilty, citizens will understand the parties weren’t complicit but are victims as well. If inaction continues, though, people will question where the loyalties of the parties lie.

The goal must be securing the integrity of parliamentarians rather than scoring political points. Once the bad actors are exposed, trust can be rebuilt.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.