Following claims that Chinese agents interfered in recent Canadian elections and stole industry secrets from Hydro-Québec, Conservative Sen. Leo Housakos is calling on the Canadian government to take a much harder line against China — a country he describes as “an evil authoritarian regime.”
Housakos has introduced a bill, S-237, that would establish a foreign influence registry in Canada — a system that would compel agents working on behalf of a foreign government to either register their interactions with public officials in Canada or face criminal penalties.
Under this proposed law, any foreign-backed agent who fails to declare any interaction with a “public office holder” — like a cabinet minister, an MP, a senator or a senior government official — could be charged with a crime and face hefty fines and up to two years in jail.
While the registry is meant to act as a deterrent, it also would empower police to charge people for things that are not necessarily criminal under current law.
The proposed registry is similar to registries that exist elsewhere in the Five Eyes intelligence sharing alliance (made up of Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom).
In the U.S., for example, the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) requires people working for a “foreign principal” to publicly disclose their activities.
A number of former U.S. president Donald Trump’s staffers were charged under the law after promoting foreign interests stateside.
The 1938 law was enacted in response to concerns about Nazi and communist propaganda in the U.S.
Housakos said Canada needs this sort of law now to deal with a different threat — an “increasingly belligerent” China.
Canada has a long list of grievances against Beijing that demand some sort of response, he added.
‘Evil’ regimes trying to manipulate us, senator says
“There’s no doubt countries like China, Iran, Russia, just to name a few of the evil authoritarian regimes, are trying to influence our institutions, our laws,” Housakos told CBC News.
“All of these regimes are very active in Canada and we have a prime minister and a government that refuses to take concrete steps.”
Bill S-237 represents “a small but important step” toward curbing that interference, he added.
Conservative Sen. Leo Housakos has introduced legislation to establish a foreign registry in Canada, a system that would force agents working on behalf of foreign governments to register their interactions with public officials in Canada. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
“Canada has been under siege from regimes like Beijing, like Moscow, like Tehran, and now we need to step up and take action to protect the security of our institutions. We need to put these nations on notice that if you’re going to set up spy operations or policing activities to intimidate Canadians, there will be consequences,” Housakos said, referring to reports that China has established “police stations” in Canada and elsewhere to keep an eye on Chinese nationals living abroad.
“We need some laws with teeth.”
A spokesperson for Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said “protecting Canada’s democracy is a responsibility” the government takes “extremely seriously.”
The spokesperson said CSIS and the RCMP are regularly investigating allegations of foreign interference.
The spokesperson did not answer questions about whether the government would enact a foreign registry.
Margaret McCuaig-Johnston is a senior fellow at the Institute for Science, Society and Policy at the University of Ottawa and an expert on China.
She said China’s alleged interference in our democracy — through what Global News has described as a “clandestine network” of candidates in the 2019 election — is “extremely serious.”
Citing unnamed sources, Global News reported last week that China was behind “a vast campaign of foreign inference” in Canadian politics, including attempts to “co-opt and corrupt former Canadian officials to gain leverage in Ottawa” and a campaign to “punish Canadian politicians whom the People’s Republic of China views as threats to its interests.”
Speaking to reporters Sunday, though, Trudeau denied that he had any knowledge of the alleged interference, though he said he had instructed officials to look into the claims and co-operate with the parliamentary committee investigating the issue.
“But let me be clear, I do not have any information, nor have I been briefed, on any federal candidates receiving any money from China,” he said.
McCuaig-Johnston said Canadian police must mobilize to investigate these claims. She said she also supports the idea of a foreign registry along the lines of what Housakos is proposing.
She also pointed out that the last parliamentarian to propose such a registry may have been targeted by the Chinese government himself.
Former Conservative MP Kenny Chiu in the House of Commons on April 13, 2021. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
Former Conservative MP Kenny Chiu has accused the Chinese government of targeting him with a disinformation campaign during the last federal election because he introduced legislation to enact a foreign registry. Chiu ultimately lost his seat in a riding with a large number of Chinese-Canadian voters.
“It should really be the government that brings this registry in,” McCuaig-Johnston said, adding that the state of Canada-China relations leaves Ottawa with little to lose
“Canada is still in the deep freeze. We’re still being punished for Meng,” she said, referring to Canada’s 2018 arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on a U.S. warrant.
“We have to set all the pressure aside and say, ‘We’re going to do what’s right for Canada,’ and that includes a foreign registry act.”
‘This shouldn’t be a partisan issue’
In an interview with CBC Radio’s The House, Dan Stanton, a retired CSIS intelligence officer and the director of national security at the University of Ottawa’s Professional Development Institute, said action against China needs to be above everyday party politics.
To start, Stanton said, Canada needs to amend the existing CSIS Act to empower national security agencies to deal with “foreign influence,” not just Cold War-era style foreign “interference.”
“This shouldn’t be a partisan issue. There needs to be a Team Canada approach. It shouldn’t be an us vs. them issue. It needs to be multi-party, because all parties are vulnerable,” he said.
While Canada has done little to counter China up to now, Stanton said he thinks there’s now a “window of opportunity” for the Liberal government to take legislative action to safeguard Canada’s interests.
He said he’s encouraged by the fact that the Commons procedure and House affairs committee (PROC) will be probing these election interference allegations in the coming weeks.
“The government gets it. They really do. And I think they genuinely want to push back. There’s a good opportunity to get some legislative changes,” he said.
HOUSTON (AP) — Brian White scored in the second half to rally the Vancouver Whitecaps to a 1-1 draw with the Houston Dynamo on Wednesday night.
Houston (12-9-8) took a 1-0 lead into halftime after Ezequiel Ponce scored on a penalty kick in the seventh minute of stoppage time. Ponce’s third goal this season came after Amine Bassi drew a foul on Whitecaps midfielder Pedro Vite following a video review. It was Ponce’s sixth career appearance, all starts.
Vancouver (13-8-7) scored the equalizer in the 73rd minute when White, who entered in the 60th, used assists from Fafá Picault and Ryan Gauld to find the net for the 13th time this season. Picault’s assist was his fifth, matching his career high for a single season. Gauld’s assist gives him a career-best 13 on the season.
Yohei Takaoka, who had clean sheets in his last three starts, finished with one save in goal for the Whitecaps.
Steve Clark saved three shots for the Dynamo, who remain one point behind Vancouver in the Western Conference standings.
Houston, which was coming off a 4-1 victory over Real Salt Lake, has allowed just 33 goals this season.
Vancouver — 6-2-2 in its last 10 matches overall — leads the all-time series 10-9-6.
The Whitecaps remain on the road to play the Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday. The Dynamo travel to play Austin FC on Saturday.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Tom Pearce and Nathan Saliba scored in the second half — the first goals of their careers — and CF Montreal rallied for a 2-2 draw with the New England Revolution on Wednesday night.
“In the second half, the guys came out a little more ambitious and above all, more connected,” Montreal head coach Laurent Courtois said. “It was a great second half of resilience and fighting spirit. Nathan and Sam were impressive.
“Impressive in covering the gaps and compensating for the teammates, and the individual defending – yes it’s true, it is a lot of weight on their shoulders, but that’s the job.”
New England (8-16-4) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the 24th minute on Bobby Wood’s third goal of the season. Teenage defender Peyton Miller notched his first assist in his fourth career start and sixth appearance and Carles Gil picked up his ninth of the season. Peyton, at 16 years, 315 days old, is the eighth youngest player in league history to record his first assist.
The Revolution took a two-goal lead in the 35th minute and held it through halftime when 19-year-old Esmir Bajraktarevic took a pass from Gil and scored his third goal of the season and career in his first full season in the league. It was the 73rd regular-season assist in Gil’s career, tying him with Steve Ralston for the most in club history.
Montreal (7-12-10) pulled within a goal in the 54th minute when Pearce scored off a free kick after defender George Campbell drew a foul on New England’s Mark-Anthony Kaye. It was the first goal for Pearce in his third career start and fourth appearance.
“Playoffs are the goal. Maybe it wasn’t in the best form, but in the end, we are picking up a point,” Pearce said. “We came into this game confident, ready to play our own game. Everyone tries their best, whenever the players are called on, we are always ready, and we are always giving it our best.”
Montreal scored the equalizer in the 68th minute on the first career goal by Saliba, a 20-year-old midfielder. Saliba has made 34 starts and 48 appearances with Montreal in his two seasons in the league. Campbell snagged his second assist of the season and the third of his career.
“It’s an incredible feeling, it’s a goal I’ve been waiting for a long time. I’m extremely happy that I was able to score it and that it can help the team take this important point on the road,” Saliba said. “Pearce’s first goal gave us really good momentum and we kept up the pressure to go for a second goal. We got more solid defensively, and we came back ready after halftime, to push for these 3 points.”
Aljaz Ivacic finished with four saves in goal for the Revolution.
Jonathan Sirois stopped four shots for Montreal.
New England beat Montreal 5-0 on the road on Aug. 24.
New England leads the all-time series 16-13-4. Montreal improves to 5-8-2 on the road against the Revs.
The Revolution travel to take on Charlotte FC on Saturday. Montreal returns home to host the Chicago Fire on Saturday.
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Adolis García hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning, Cody Bradford pitched seven strong innings after the worst start of his career, and the Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 2-0 on Wednesday night.
The win kept the defending World Series-champion Rangers alive in the AL West race, trailing first-place Houston by 10 games with 10 to play.
García launched an inside sinker over the left-field wall off Toronto starter Bowden Francis (8-5) after Wyatt Langford singled.
“He swings hard, he swings a lot,” Francis said of García. “I guess the velo was dropping during that time.”
Bradford (6-3) allowed five hits and no walks while striking out six.
The seven shutout innings are the most in a game during his two-year career. He was knocked out of his previous start after allowing career highs in hits (nine), runs (eight) and homers (three) in 3 2/3 innings in a 14-4 loss at Arizona.
“Throughout the week, you’ve got to try and digest what happened, see where I can make adjustments, whether it was just game plan went wrong or just poor execution, or a little bit of both,” Bradford said. “Then you flush it.”
Bradford was perfect through four innings before Alejandro Kirk opened the fifth with a smash back to the mound that caromed off Bradford’s left foot and rolled into right field for a single. It extended Kirk’s hitting streak to a career-high 12 games.
Spencer Horwitz’s double to left-center put runners on second and third with no outs before Bradford retired the next three batters.
Blue Jays manager John Schneider credited Bradford’s “deceptive fastball.”
“When you’re throwing 89, 92, you’ve got to have pretty good deception with that at this level,” Schneider said. “Kept us off balance.”
Kirby Yates pitched a perfect ninth inning for his 31st save in 32 opportunities.
Francis, who took no-hitters into the ninth inning in two of his previous four starts, allowed a double to Marcus Semien, the Rangers’ first hitter of the game. He gave up five hits and one walk in six innings.
Francis has a 1.96 ERA in nine starts with 54 strikeouts and seven walks since being moved back into the starting rotation in late July.
“I don’t even want to get complacent, on cruise control,” Francis said. “Just keep attacking.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Blue Jays: SS Bo Bichette was a late scratch with a right middle finger contusion suffered during infield practice. Schneider said the team will get back x-rays on Thursday. Bichette was activated Tuesday following a calf injury and played for the first time in two months, going 2 for 5 with one RBI at the plate. … INF Will Wagner (left knee inflammation) will have the knee scoped on Thursday. Schneider said Wagner should be ready to start spring training. Wagner, son of former major leaguer Billy Wagner, was acquired from Houston at the trade deadline.
UP NEXT
Rangers rookie RHP Kumar Rocker (0-0, 2.25 ERA) will make his home debut against Blue Jays RHP Kevin Gausman (12-11, 4.02) in the series finale. Rocker allowed one run in four innings at Seattle last Thursday in his major league debut.
