The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) is facing a leadership change as its director prepares to step down.
In a media statement, CSIS director David Vigneault said he would be stepping down from the position and leaving the public service. No explanation was given for his departure.
“I’m extremely proud of the work that my team and I have accomplished in recent years at CSIS, bringing the organization out of the shadows, and shedding light on the important and valuable role we play in protecting Canadians against foreign interference and threats to national security,” he said.
Mr. Vigneault assumed the role of CSIS director in June 2017, becoming the ninth person to hold this position. Prior to this appointment, he served as assistant secretary to the cabinet, security, and intelligence in the Privy Council Office from 2013 to 2017.
His career in Canada’s security and intelligence community included roles such as director of transnational security at the Communications Security Establishment, associate vice-president at the Canada Border Services Agency, and executive assistant to the Deputy Minister in the Department of National Defence.
In a post
on X, Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc expressed his appreciation for the years of dedication Mr. Vigneault gave to Canada’s interest and security.
“David Vigneault has spent his entire career in the service of Canadians—keeping them, and our national interests, safe from those seeking to harm them. As he announces his retirement from [CSIS], I want to wish him the very best in this next chapter,” Mr. LeBlanc said.
Key Issues
Mr. Vigneault’s tenure as CSIS director was marked by pivotal moments in national security and significant public scrutiny, coinciding with challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic and issues of foreign interference.CSIS’s position was scrutinized during the Public Order Emergency Commission, which reviewed the government’s response to the 2022 Freedom Convoy and related border blockades—protests primarily directed against government restrictions and vaccine mandates.
Despite CSIS
not categorizing the convoy protests as a national security threat, Mr. Vigneault
told the commission that he had advised Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that invoking the Emergencies Act was justified.
Mr. Vigneault was also called as a witness to the Foreign Interference Commission, which has been investigating allegations of Beijing’s interference in Canadian elections. During a commission hearing earlier this year,
confusion arose when Mr. Trudeau and his senior advisers testified that CSIS documents warning about foreign interference had not been transmitted to the prime minister during previous briefings. Mr. Vigneault was
called back to the commission, where he confirmed that he had communicated the warnings to the government.
The
prime minister and his
cabinet had also blamed CSIS for not briefing the government on Beijing’s attempts to target Conservative MP Michael Chong and his family. The threat was disclosed publicly after the Globe and Mail broke the news in May 2023, citing an intelligence source and a leaked document. However,
Mr. Chong told the House of Commons that former National Security and Intelligence Adviser Jody Thomas informed him the CSIS report had been shared with her predecessor two years before.
Noé Chartier contributed to this report.
