Months after the Liberal government offered opposition leaders the opportunity to view classified intelligence related to former special rapporteur David Johnston’s report on alleged China-backed meddling in Canadian politics, a dispute is brewing over what was promised — and what was actually delivered.
Green Party Co-Leader Elizabeth May expressed frustration last week with the level of information provided to her in the classified documents and said she was requesting access to additional materials.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said Friday the information May saw was what she and other opposition leaders were promised.
Before resigning from his role as special rapporteur, Johnston published an initial report that, in part, addressed media allegations about Beijing-backed meddling in Canadian elections and Canadian politics.
“When viewed in full context with all of the relevant intelligence, several leaked materials that raised legitimate questions turn out to have been misconstrued in some media reports, presumably because of the lack of this context,” Johnston wrote.
David Johnston, independent special rapporteur on foreign interference, presents his first report in Ottawa on Tuesday, May 23, 2023. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
Johnston’s report detailed the major allegations put forth in media reports published by Global News and The Globe and Mail and offered his conclusions on each allegation based on his review of the intelligence.
In his executive summary, Johnston said he had compiled a “confidential annex” to his report “that addresses the major media allegations in detail and includes citations to the intelligence documents and other products that led me to my conclusions.”
“The purpose of this confidential annex is to permit individuals holding appropriate Top Secret security clearance to review my conclusions and judge whether they are warranted based on the full information contained in the annex,” he added.
Trudeau’s offer to opposition leaders
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau welcomed Johnston’s report and told a press conference that “letters have been sent to opposition leaders offering security clearances so that they may receive the relevant intelligence.”
The offer to opposition leaders to receive “relevant intelligence” was repeated in a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, which went on to say that “these additional steps will serve to give Canadians further confidence in this report’s findings.”
The letters sent to opposition leaders make it clear that the “relevant intelligence” on offer was Johnston’s confidential annex.
In a letter sent to Elizabeth May, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau indicated that the additional information promised to opposition parties was in Johnston’s confidential annex. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
“The ISR (Independent Special Rapporteur) has also produced a confidential annex to this first report, containing additional details; that annex is available to those individuals with the proper security clearances based on the ‘need to know’ principle,” Trudeau wrote in a letter addressed to May.
“As such, I am writing you and other party leaders to launch the requisite security clearance process, should you chose.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet both refused to review the documents, arguing the top secret security clearance would prevent them from speaking about the allegations publicly.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and Green Party Co-Leader Elizabeth May opted to receive the security clearance.
Singh has yet to review the top secret documents. May did so last week and expressed frustration with the information made available to her.
May’s complaint
“I can’t conclude that David Johnston’s conclusions were reasonable, nor can I conclude they are unreasonable,” said May, adding that she was not allowed to review the documents Johnston cited to support the findings in his 20-page confidential annex.
“A document that is laboriously referenced but unavailable does not help me do what David Johnston said we’d be able to do, which was to see how he formed his conclusions and add whether we agree or disagree that his conclusions were reasonable.”
Green Party Co-Leader Elizabeth May said the dearth of detail in Johnston’s annex made it impossible for her to form any conclusions. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press )
May told reporters she had asked the Privy Council Office (PCO) whether she could review the documents cited by Johnston and was waiting for a response.
CBC News asked the PCO last Friday whether the additional documents would be made available to May. The PCO punted that question to LeBlanc’s office on Monday.
Review of additional documents ‘a different decision’
LeBlanc told reporters Tuesday that the government delivered on its offer and the question of whether opposition leaders will be cleared to review additional classified documents will be answered by security officials, with support from the PCO.
“Our offer, suggested by Mr. Johnston in the spring, was to show them the confidential or top secret annex,” LeBlanc told reporters in Charlottetown.
“To then go behind and look at all of the documents that Mr. Johnston and his experts in their review used to come up with the top secret annex is a different decision.”
LeBlanc said the government has taken note of May’s concerns and he will raise it with security officials in the PCO to “figure out the best way forward.”
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
