Green Party Leader Elizabeth May has reviewed the unredacted version of the latest report on foreign interference and said there is no secret list of names of parliamentarians who have been disloyal to Canada.
At a Tuesday press conference on Parliament Hill, Ms. May said she had reviewed a full version o popcorn cannabis f the bombshell report produced on foreign interference by the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP).
A redacted version of the report released last week said some parliamentarians wittingly assisted efforts by foreign states to interference in Canadian politics. Since then, Parliament Hill has been consumed with reaction. Conservatives have demanded that names be released, which the Liberal government said it is legally unable to do. wholesale cannabis marketplace
On Monday, the Liberals said allegations of federal politicians colluding with other countries should be turned over to the foreign interference inquiry headed by Justice Marie-Josée Hogue. The vote on a Bloc Québécois motion on the matter is scheduled for Tuesday, but its passage appears assured given that the Liberals, NDP, Bloc and Conservatives have indicated they would support it.
Justice Hogue is conducting a massive public inquiry into interference in Canadian politics by China and other states. She released an interim report in May and is planning another round of public hearings in the fall, with a final report due by the end of year. The inquiry declined to comment Monday on the motion and said it was awaiting the outcome of the vote.
Ms. May said she does n bulk weed ot believe that the Hogue inquiry is the appropriate venue to refer the information, saying she thinks it would be “better for parliamentarians to take responsibility for the hot potato.”
Ms. May said Tuesday that a former MP – who is not named in the full report – who is accused of sharing privileged information should be investigated. She also called for party leaders to come together to consider next steps.
Ms. May said she was motivated to speak on Tuesday because she considers it important to stay focused on what foreign governments are seeking to do in Canada, not on whether there is a “secret list” of names that should be released, “because there isn’t one.”
The NSICOP report said some politicians are accepting money from foreign governments and are communicating frequently with foreign governments to obtain support from community groups or businesses that foreign diplomats have promised to mobilize to help their campaigns.
Others are allegedly providing foreign diplomats with privileged information on fellow parliamentarians knowing that this information will be used to put pressure on these colleagues to change their positions, the report said. It also said some are lobbying colleagues or influencing parliamentary business to help a foreign state, or leaking confidential information to known intelligence officers of foreign states.
With files from Steven Chase