November 8, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Ottawa, ON – The Hon. Michael Chong, Conservative Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Pierre Paul-Hus, Quebec Political Lieutenant, released the following statement regarding a media report that the Communist regime in Beijing interfered in the 2019 Canadian general election:

“Conservatives are extremely troubled by a recent media report that Canada has been a target of extensive foreign interference by Beijing in the 2019 election. Intelligence officials informed the Prime Minister and several cabinet ministers about this interference in a series of in briefings in January of this year.
“It’s long past time for the Trudeau government to come forward with a robust plan to counter Beijing’s foreign interference operations here on Canadian soil.

“It’s clear that Beijing spread disinformation in the 2021 federal election campaign through proxies that negatively affected Conservative campaigns in several ridings. It’s also clear in indictments unsealed in U.S. court that Beijing’s agents are operating here on Canadian soil, coercing people to go back to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) by threatening their families in the PRC. The unsealed indictments also state that Beijing’s agents operating in the U.S. have pressured U.S. residents to travel to Toronto for more intensive interrogation, suggesting that the PRC views Canada as a safe haven for more intensive operations. More recently, reports have revealed the presence of three illegal PRC police stations operating in Toronto and surrounding areas.

“We now find out that CSIS has concluded that Beijing corrupted political financing laws and interfered in the 2019 election. But to our knowledge, the government has not expelled anyone for these interference operations in Canada, nor has anyone been criminally charged.

“Conservatives have long called for a robust plan, first introducing a motion adopted by the House of Commons on November 18, 2020. Conservatives also pushed to re-establish the Special Committee on Canada-People’s Republic of China Relations this past June, which is mandated to study these and other challenges related to the Canada-People’s Republic of China relationship.

“The biggest victim of these PRC intimidation and interference operations is the Chinese community themselves. The Trudeau government must do more to protect the Chinese community from the PRC’s threats, and to protect Canadian democracy.”

-30-