Public Inquiry Into Election Interference Should ‘Be on the Table:’ Election Integrity Adviser

Elections Canada workers place signage at the Halifax Convention Centre in Halifax as they prepare for the polls to open in the federal election on Sept. 20, 2021. (Andrew Vaughan/The Canadian Press)

Morris Rosenberg, the author of a recent report released by the federal government concluding that foreign interference attempts in the 2019 and 2021 elections did not sway their outcomes, says a public inquiry into interference reports should “be on the table.”

Rosenberg, who is a former senior public servant, appeared on CTV’s Question Period on March 5, where he gave his thoughts on the supposed drawbacks and benefits of calling a public inquiry into election interference.

Rosenberg said that while the government has put in place a number of mechanisms to detect and combat election interference, he also sees the need for additional measures.

“I think at this point consideration needs to be given to doing something else,” he said, adding that there are good arguments for and against calling a public inquiry.

He said that a public inquiry could take “a long time to get started” and not even be completed by the time of the next federal election, but added, “It’s an option that I think needs to be on the table.”

“I would also say that it’s important to think through what is the scope of the public inquiry,” he said.

“Whether there’s a public inquiry or not, it ought not to take away from the sense of urgency that the government should have about continuing to work on this.”

Rosenberg’s report was released by Ottawa on Feb. 28 and assessed the work done by the Critical Election Incident Public Protocol (CEIPP) in the 2021 federal election.

The CEIPP was created by the Liberal government in 2019 to communicate with the public in the event of election integrity being compromised through foreign influence.

Rosenberg’s report said the CEIPP didn’t detect foreign election interference in 2019 and 2021 that would’ve swayed election outcomes, but noted that there were “efforts at foreign interference” and made a number of recommendations to the government.

Canadians Concerned

Rosenberg also referenced recent polls conducted by Nanos Research and the Angus Reid Institute finding that a majority of Canadians are concerned about the Chinese communist regime’s interference in Canada’s democracy and also that almost 70 percent of the country thinks Ottawa is “afraid to stand up” to Beijing.

Rosenberg said he understands the concerns of most Canadians and said it “raises an issue [that] is going to have to be addressed in some way.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also recently said he understands the concerns Canadians have about Chinese interference in elections, and said he has “shared those concerns all the way back to 2015.”

However, the prime minister also dismissed the possibility of holding a public inquiry, saying there are already a number of “mechanisms” in place to counter foreign interference, such as the CEIPP.

Opposition MPs on the House of Commons Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs voted 6–5 on March 2 in favour of calling for a public inquiry into the election interference reports.

Noé Chartier contributed to this report.