Poilievre Says It’s an ‘Accepted Fact’ That Beijing Helped Elect Trudeau

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre speaks at a news conference in Calgary on Feb. 15, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Jeff McIntosh)

Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre said on March 14 that the national security leaks in the media have established that the Liberals were helped by the Chinese regime to get elected.

“I think Justin Trudeau has inspired a lot of suspicion by his refusal to ... answer questions about his knowledge of Beijing’s interference to help him in two successive elections,” Poilievre said during a press conference in New Westminster, B.C.

“Leaked CSIS and PCO documents now show that Beijing worked to help elect Justin Trudeau. That is an accepted fact. He doesn’t even deny it.”

Poilievre was responding to a reporter who asked why he thinks supporters of the Conservative Party are, based on recent polls, more concerned about foreign interference.

“I think Canadians of all political backgrounds are asking ‘What has Justin Trudeau got to hide?’” Poilievre said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admits there was interference but said it didn’t impact election results. The Conservatives and NDP also say that the interference didn’t impact the overall outcome of the election.

An Angus Reid poll from early March suggests that 50 percent of Conservative Party voters believe the Chinese regime “definitely” tried to interfere in Canadian elections, whereas 24 of Liberals believe the same.

Overall, 65 percent of people surveyed believed there was definite or probable interference.

Media have been reporting on classified documents from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Privy Council Office (PCO) since last November.

Global News has named a federal MP and a provincial MPP as being linked to Chinese regime foreign interference networks.

The Globe and Mail, citing CSIS documents, reported that the Chinese Communist Party’s strategy was to have a Liberal minority government elected and to defeat certain Conservative candidates.

The Conservatives and other opposition parties have been requesting a public inquiry to look into the matter.

Trudeau has instead decided to appoint a “special rapporteur” to evaluate the country’s response to the threat, which could include recommending holding a public inquiry.

Trudeau said on March 14 his government is working “extremely quickly” on selecting the rapporteur, adding the appointment will be made in the coming days or weeks.

“There is no question that yes, there was attempted interference from Beijing into our electoral processes,” Trudeau said while in Nova Scotia.

The prime minister added that because of processes put in place by his government, the interference did not affect the outcome of the elections.

This is also the view of CSIS Director David Vigneault.

Along with naming a special rapporteur, Trudeau has also claimed that current mechanisms are sufficient to look into foreign interference.

Two House of Commons committees are currently studying the issue.

Opposition MPs on the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs are trying to pass a motion to have Trudeau’s chief of staff testify, but Liberal MPs have been running the clock with lengthy speeches during consecutive meetings to avoid a vote.