Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Monday, March 6, 2023. Trudeau is calling on the committee of parliamentarians that reviews matters of national security and the national intelligence watchdog to independently investigate concerns about foreign interference in Canada. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA – The leader of Canada’s Opposition says he has little confidence the Liberal government will appoint a truly independent watchdog to investigate foreign interference.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he predicts the government will pick someone who looks like a “reasonable fella” with grey hair, but is really tied to the Liberal establishment.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government will appoint a special rapporteur with a wide mandate to investigate foreign interference.
But Poilievre says a public inquiry is needed into China’s alleged attempts to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 elections.
He says top-secret information should be under a publication ban and only information that will imperil national interests should be withheld.
Trudeau has left the door open to holding a public inquiry should the rapporteur recommend it.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2023.
