RCMP investigating about 100 cases of foreign interference, including against MP Michael Chong

OTTAWA-The RCMP revealed Tuesday it's investigating foreign interference activities against Conservative MP Michael Chong, and working with Canada's elections watchdog with regards to interference aimed at two other MPs.

The revelations came alongside continued political bickering over the government's response to the issue overall, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urging his rivals to move past the toxicity and the partisanship" to chart a path forward in the wake of last week's surprise resignation of former governor general David Johnston as the special rapporteur."

But the Conservatives seized on testimony before the House of Commons procedure as new information from the RCMP and the deputy foreign affairs minister highlighted the complexity of how foreign interference intelligence is handled in Canada.

The RCMP told the procedure and house affairs committee that while Beijing's targeting of lawmakers is not news," and has been included in reports for years, they only learned the specifics of Chong's case after it came to light in the media in May.

That month, The Globe and Mail reported that Chong was pinpointed in 2021 after he led a motion calling Beijing's actions against Uyghur Muslims a genocide.

How many RCMP investigations are there?

Chong later confirmed via his own briefing with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) that China was gathering information on him and his family, for potential retaliation.

When we were made aware of it, we approached Mr. Chong and began an investigation," RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme told the procedure and house affairs committee.

A spokesperson for the RCMP told the Star Tuesday that the investigation relates to Chong's public comments about being intimidated," and intimidation is a violation of the Criminal Code.

Chong has never fully disclosed the details of the intimidation efforts, and the RCMP said due to privacy and the integrity of the investigation, it can provide no further comment at the moment.

Chong's case is one of around 100 investigations into foreign actor activities currently on the go within the RCMP, the committee heard Tuesday. Those include various elements of how foreign interference manifests in Canada, including in the economy and academia.

But the cases of two other MPs aren't among them, the committee heard.

Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole and NDP MP Jenny Kwan have both publicly disclosed they have been informed by CSIS they are potential targets of Beijing, but the RCMP is assisting the Commissioner of Canada Elections on those files as the concerns fall within the mandate of elections law, Duheme said.

The issue of who does what with allegations of foreign interference was also part of Johnston's work as the government's special rapporteur on foreign interference, a post he quit citing the highly partisan" atmosphere surrounding his appointment and its conclusions.

Among them was the fact a public inquiry could not fully explore the issues because the information needs to stay classified.

What did Trudeau know?

In reviewing all of the information, Johnston also concluded that neither Trudeau nor his ministers ignored crucial warnings because the existing intelligence wasn't as conclusive as reported or brought to their attention.

Opposition parties, however, discounted those conclusions on the basis of Johnston's personal ties with the Trudeau family rendering him unable to be truly objective.

But one set of eyes on the July 2021 memo that included information about MPs being potential targets for retaliation by China told MPs Tuesday the document was being widely misunderstood."

David Morrison, now the deputy foreign affairs minister, was the national security adviser when the July 2021 briefing was produced, and he told MPs he read it that August.

He said the point of such an assessment was to generate broad awareness.

When someone like me reads it, we can be quite certain that others already know the information and have taken action on it, or it wouldn't be buried in an assessment report," he said.

The system functioned according to the existing protocols at the time, he said, with an example being the defensive" briefings given to Chong at the time.

Chong has disputed the value of that briefing given he wasn't told of the particulars, and the government has since changed its protocols so that MPs will be notified if they are directly identified in intelligence materials.

The Conservatives, however, said Morrison's testimony during question period was further evidence the Liberals sat on information about MPs being targets.

It is not a comedy of errors, it is a tragedy of errors with the government," Tory ethics critic Michael Barrett said, repeating his party's call for a public inquiry.

The future of all Johnston's suggestions are in doubt given his departure from the post.

The government has now asked Opposition parties for ideas as to who could replace him.

The Bloc Quebecois has put forward a list of names, which include former Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour, who also served as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Canada's former ambassador to China, Guy Saint-Jacques.

I think it's good that we're seeing constructive contributions from various parties right now," Trudeau said on his way into question period Tuesday.

Foreign interference is an issue that needs to be taken seriously. If we can move past the toxicity and the partisanship that has characterized the approach by many parties and actually take this seriously, work together and figure out a way to highlight everything that is being done, and what next steps can be taken, it will be a good thing."

Stephanie Levitz is an Ottawa-based reporter covering federal politics for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @StephanieLevitz