Trudeau orders review of alleged Chinese election meddling

BLOOMBERG

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau yielded to pressure over allegations China interfered in Canada’s elections, appointing a special investigator to study the matter.
“Upholding confidence in our democratic process in our elections, in our institutions, is of utmost importance,” the prime minister told reporters in Ottawa. The “independent special rapporteur” will have a wide mandate and make recommendations on fighting foreign meddling, he added.
The issue will also be studied by a group of lawmakers cleared to see top-secret intelligence, Trudeau said.
A series of media reports in recent weeks said Trudeau received intelligence briefings alleging that China meddled in both the 2019 and 2021 votes that returned him to power. The reports included claims that Chinese officials spread misinformation to hurt certain candidates, including Conservative Party candidates, and funneled money and volunteers toward people it wanted to see elected.
The most serious allegation came in a February 17 Globe and Mail report, citing intelligence that China preferred to see Trudeau’s Liberal Party elected over the alternative of a Conservative government.
Last week, a non-partisan group of government officials published a report that found there were attempts at foreign interference in the 2021 vote, “but not enough to have met the threshold of impacting electoral integrity.”
Recent polling has found that two-thirds of Canadians believe China tried to interfere, and more than half see it as a serious threat to Canada’s democracy and want Trudeau to do more in response.
Opposition politicians and independent experts have urged the prime minister to call a judicial inquiry, but he instead opted to name a special investigator and refer the matter to the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians. The investigator may recommend a full judicial review, Trudeau said, and “we will abide by their recommendation.”
The cross-partisan group of lawmakers is cleared to review classified intelligence, but is also sworn to secrecy about it. The committee’s reports are published in parliament with significant redactions to any secret intelligence.