A Global News report earlier this month cited unnamed sources who claimed Trudeau was told last January that China was trying to interfere in Canadian politics, including by funding at least 11 candidates in the 2019 federal election. The Liberals have been hammered in the House of Commons by opposition MPs demanding to know who the candidates are and what Canada is doing about the intervention. None of the MPs who responded, including Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, gave any substantive response beyond insisting that Canada’s election was free and fair. Neither of them denied having information about Chinese-funded candidates. However, during remarks at the end of the Francophonie Summit in Tunisia on Sunday, Trudeau said the government has not publicly recognized the candidates because it does not know who they are. He said he only learned of the particular allegation from the media. “Let me be clear, I have no information, nor have I been informed of any federal candidates receiving money from China,” Trudeau said. He later stressed that he is “regularly briefed by our intelligence and security officials” and no one has ever given him any information about candidates receiving money. On November 14, the Liberals backed a Conservative motion in a House of Commons committee to expand an ongoing study into foreign interference to include news that Trudeau and other ministers were briefed on the Chinese government’s efforts to “influence actively in the 2019 election.”
Committee to Investigate Foreign Intervention
The proposal does not specifically mention the funding of the candidates, but refers to the news reporting he did. The Liberals say they supported the motion because the story raised questions that officials at the committee would have to answer. The resolution calls on the government to provide “all relevant” briefing notes and other documents related to the issue within the next two weeks. “I’ve asked officials to look at these media reports and give all possible answers, whatever they can, to the parliamentary committee that’s looking into it,” Trudeau said Sunday. Trudeau was speaking at the end of a 10-day overseas trip that included four international summits and Canada’s efforts to expand its influence and economic ties in Asia, despite frosty relations with China. The chill in Canada-China ties was evident during the trip, particularly at the G20 summit in Bali, where Trudeau said he spoke to President Xi Jinping on the sidelines about “interfering with our citizens.” The Prime Minister’s Office released this photo of Trudeau and Chinese President Xi Jinping talking face-to-face on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia, on Nov. 15. The day after that conversation, Xi accused Trudeau of leaking inappropriate details of the talk to the media. (Prime Ministry) Xi reprimanded Trudeau in front of the Canadian media, accusing him of improperly leaking details of that conversation to the press. It is not unusual for the Trudeau government to provide reporters with key details about the issues discussed between the prime minister and other foreign leaders, but Xi disputed that. Trudeau told Xi that people believe in openness and transparency in Canada. Trudeau would not confirm to the media whether he specifically discussed election interference with Xi, saying only he raised interference in general. On Nov. 16 in Bali, he also said a special committee had been set up ahead of the 2019 election to monitor and analyze any possible interference. “For both the 2019 election and the 2021 election, these experts were confident that elections in Canada went the right way and that Canadians can be reassured about that,” he said. “Their reports are clear, so Canadians can and should be reassured that yes, foreign interference is an issue in many different ways, as we’ve seen around the world, but the integrity of Canadian elections has not been compromised.” .
