- Member of Parliament
- Member of the Joint Interparliamentary Council
- Conservative
- St. Albert—Edmonton
- Alberta
- Voting Attendance: 67%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $119,185.60
- Government Page
- Dec/13/22 6:50:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, no one is contesting that the 2019 election was anything other than free and fair overall, but that does not take away the fact that there was a reported campaign of interference by Beijing. It does not take away the fact that the PCO intelligence assessment secretariat determined there to be an active foreign interference network involving Beijing in the 2019 election, and it does not take away the fact that candidates and riding associations are being targeted by foreign interference.
What is undermining Canadians' confidence in our elections and their integrity are the non-answers provided by the government. When is it going to be transparent?
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- Dec/13/22 6:43:42 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, Canadians deserve transparency from the government when it comes to Beijing's interference in our elections.
That is precisely the advice that the government received from CSIS. It stated that the government's policy in response to foreign interference be guided by transparency and sunlight, and that foreign interference be made known to the public.
The approach of the Liberal government has been to do precisely the opposite of what CSIS has advised. It has been anything but transparent when it comes to the reported vast campaign of interference in the 2019 election by Beijing. The Prime Minister and ministers, for weeks, have refused to answer basic questions about what they know about this interference.
More than that, they have acted as though there is nothing to see and that there is nothing to be concerned about, except we know that is not true. There is indeed plenty to be concerned about from just the very limited disclosure that the procedure and House affairs committee has received, which is undertaking hearings around Beijing's 2019 election interference.
For example, a daily foreign intelligence brief dated February 21, 2020, prepared by the intelligence assessment secretariat of the PCO, which was disclosed to our committee yesterday and is heavily redacted, states, “Investigations into activities linked to the Canadian federal election in 2019, reveal an active foreign interference (FI) network”.
An active foreign interference network is hardly something to be brushed under the rug, yet when I asked the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister of Foreign Affairs today at committee, they provided nothing in the way of an answer with respect to what they know about this active foreign interference network from Beijing involved in the 2019 election campaign.
Then there is a briefing to the Prime Minister from CSIS, in which there is a subheading referencing politicians and riding associations that have been targeted by foreign interference. Today when I asked the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs about who the politicians and the riding associations were that had been targeted by foreign interference, his response was as if it was a figment of my imagination, when in fact it is in a CSIS document to the Prime Minister.
When will the Liberals finally take the advice of CSIS, be transparent and tell Canadians what they know about Beijing's campaign interference, what they know about the active foreign interference network in the 2019 election campaign and which riding associations and politicians have been targeted by foreign interference?
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- Dec/5/22 2:43:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, was the Prime Minister briefed about Beijing's election interference involving 11 candidates? The Prime Minister has been repeatedly asked this question and he has not answered it. He hides behind carefully crafted words such as saying he was not briefed about candidates receiving money from China, but that is not the question.
When will the Prime Minister stop his stonewalling, stop his word parsing and tell us what he knows about Beijing's election interference?
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- Dec/2/22 11:52:55 a.m.
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I don't need any advice from you, Jennifer. Just answer the question.
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- Dec/2/22 11:51:56 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Prime Minister very conveniently and very specifically claims he was not briefed about candidates receiving money from China, except that is not what is at issue. What is at issue is a vast campaign of election interference by Beijing involving 11 candidates.
Was the Prime Minister briefed about that, yes or no?
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- Dec/2/22 11:50:45 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the Prime Minister has repeatedly cited national security as a pretext to avoid answering basic questions about Beijing's election interference. This is exactly the opposite of the advice he received from CSIS, which said that the government's policy in combatting foreign interference should be grounded in transparency and sunlight and that foreign interference should be exposed to the public.
Why does the Prime Minister refuse to follow the advice of CSIS?
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- Nov/30/22 7:06:28 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, no one is questioning the overall integrity of the last two elections. That is not the issue.
There is a specific report of specific interference involving 11 candidates, and it was further reported that the Prime Minister was briefed about that interference. It is important that the Prime Minister be transparent. That was the advice he had received from CSIS. I do not understand why the parliamentary secretary is unwilling to answer that very straightforward question, so I will ask it again.
Was the Prime Minister briefed about electoral interference by Beijing last January, and specifically in respect of candidates?
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- Nov/30/22 6:59:29 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, CSIS advised the Prime Minister that when it comes to foreign interference, the policy of the government should be grounded in transparency and sunlight, and that foreign interference should be exposed to the public. When it comes to Beijing's interference in our elections, the Prime Minister has been anything but transparent. Let us look at the facts.
On November 7, Global News reported that last January, the Prime Minister was briefed about a vast campaign of interference by Beijing in the 2019 election directed by Beijing's Toronto consulate involving 11 candidates. For two weeks, Conservatives asked the government what the Prime Minister did with that information. Did he report it to Elections Canada, to law enforcement, or did he sit on his hands and cover it up?
For two weeks our questions were met with silence by the Prime Minister. Suddenly, after two weeks, the Prime Minister broke his silence and essentially said “nothing to see here as it pertains to me,” claiming that he was not briefed, but using very carefully chosen words that he was not briefed about candidates receiving money from China. That is not what Global News reported on November 7 that the Prime Minister was briefed about. The Prime Minister was reportedly briefed about a vast campaign of interference by Beijing, directed by the Toronto consulate. It was reported that those candidates received money but, again, it was never alleged that that money directly came from China, that a cheque was written from China to 11 candidates.
It was telling yesterday when the Leader of the Opposition asked a pertinent question of the Prime Minister: Was he briefed about electoral interference by Beijing? Not once, not twice but on five occasions, the Prime Minister refused to answer. Today I asked the Prime Minister whether he had been briefed about electoral interference by Beijing specifically involving any candidates. Again, the report pertains to 11 candidates and a vast campaign of interference. Again, there was no answer from the Prime Minister.
What we have is the opposite of transparency. We have a smokescreen from the Prime Minister, a prime minister who is answering questions no one is asking, denying allegations no one is making, all while avoiding answering the question that needs to be answered, namely, was the Prime Minister briefed about electoral interference by Beijing? Specifically, was the Prime Minister briefed about electoral interference by Beijing involving candidates? I ask again, was he, yes or no?
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- Nov/30/22 2:56:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have a specific question for the Prime Minister. It is not about money from China. It is not about the government's election panels. It is not about the overall integrity of the last two elections. It is specifically about whether the Prime Minister was ever briefed about interference by Beijing involving any candidates or riding associations. Was he briefed?
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- Nov/29/22 2:47:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday we learned from the RCMP commissioner that there are ongoing RCMP investigations into Beijing's election interference in 2019. The Leader of the Opposition has asked a very straightforward and specific question of the Prime Minister, one he has repeatedly refused to answer. It is whether he was briefed about election interference by Beijing.
Canadians deserve transparency, so again, on election interference by Beijing, was the Prime Minister briefed, yes or no?
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- Nov/24/22 2:57:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister told the media that he has directed his security officials to share all the information they can with PROC about Beijing's election interference. However, at PROC, the Liberals gutted our Conservative motion for the production of documents by removing expressed mention of the PMO.
Will the Prime Minister assure the House that his office will hand over all relevant documents, or does he have something to hide?
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- Nov/23/22 2:50:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after two weeks of suspicious silence, the Prime Minister now suddenly claims that he was never briefed about candidates receiving money from Beijing, yet Global News is reporting that last January the Prime Minister received intelligence memos that Beijing's Toronto consulate directed the funnelling of a large sum of money to 11 candidates in the 2019 election. Therefore, did the Prime Minister receive those intelligence memos? Yes or no.
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- Nov/22/22 2:55:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my question was about what the Prime Minister may have learned in January. Non-answers like that and incomplete information from the Prime Minister after two weeks of silence hardly instill any confidence that the Prime Minister is being open and transparent with Canadians.
Again, with respect to January, was the Prime Minister briefed? Did he receive intelligence memos? What does he know about Beijing's interference?
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- Nov/22/22 2:54:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Global News reported that, last January, the Prime Minister was briefed by CSIS about a vast campaign of interference by Beijing in the 2019 election.
After two weeks of silence, suddenly and narrowly, the Prime Minister claims that he was not briefed about candidates, but that of course does not address the broader question of whether the Prime Minister was briefed about Beijing's interference.
Was the Prime Minister briefed, yes or no?
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- Nov/18/22 11:41:11 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, after that third non-answer to my straightforward question, the only conclusion that can be reasonably drawn is that the Prime Minister made no report to Elections Canada.
The Prime Minister professes to be concerned about Beijing's interference in our elections, but when he had an opportunity to do something about it, to report the illegal activity to Elections Canada, he instead chose to cover it up.
Why? What is the Prime Minister hiding?
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- Nov/18/22 11:39:57 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, when the Prime Minister was briefed by CSIS that at least 11 candidates in the 2019 election illegally received hundreds of thousands of dollars from Beijing, which violated multiple sections of the Canada Elections Act, the Prime Minister had to make a choice. He could report this illegal activity to Elections Canada so that it could investigate or he could cover it up.
What choice did the Prime Minister make?
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- Nov/17/22 2:46:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, hundreds of thousands of dollars were directed and funnelled by Beijing to 11 candidates. If that is not foreign interference, I do not know what is.
Talk about a non-answer. I asked a specific question about whether the Prime Minister acted or failed to act.
Again, upon being briefed by CSIS, did the Prime Minister report this illegal activity to Elections Canada, yes or no?
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- Nov/17/22 2:45:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, last January the Prime Minister was briefed by CSIS that at least 11 candidates in the 2019 election received hundreds of thousands of dollars, directed and funnelled through Beijing's Toronto consulate.
Given that this violates multiple sections of the Canada Elections Act, upon learning of this illegal activity, did the Prime Minister report it to Elections Canada?
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