Prime Minister Justin Trudeau repeated on March 1 that he doesn’t support launching a public inquiry into allegations of foreign interference in Canadian elections as the three main opposition parties have now requested.
“We have right now, as we’re speaking, a parliamentary committee ... hearing directly from national security experts and officials as to the work that they’ve been doing over the past many years to counter ongoing interference,” Trudeau said.
Officials who testified at the Commons Procedure and House Affairs committee on March 1 did not provide significant new details about recent allegations.
Reports in recent weeks citing national security sources and information suggest Beijing has attempted to influence the last two federal elections by supporting some Liberal candidates or working against other, allegedly Conservative, candidates.
Trudeau is under increasing pressure, with the Conservative Party and the Bloc Québécois joining the NDP on March 1 in calling for an inquiry.
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre said his party supports an inquiry, but that it has to be independent and public.
“All parties in the Parliament must agree on who the commissioner is. We cannot have yet another Liberal crony named to head up this inquiry,” said Poilievre.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet also called for a public inquiry chaired by a commissioner chosen by Parliament.
During the press conference, Trudeau was asked again to comment on the allegations reported by Global News that Liberal MP Han Dong was supported by Beijing, but he didn’t directly answer.
The calls for an inquiry follow reporting by Global News and the Globe and Mail on different aspects of election interference by the Chinese regime.
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