MPs to question special rapporteur David Johnston on foreign interference this morning
David Johnston, tasked ear‐ lier this year with investi‐ gating foreign interference in Canadian politics, is ex‐ pected to take pointed questions from MPs later this morning about his re‐ port on election meddling — and about claims that he's unfit for the job because of his connections to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Johnston is scheduled to appear for three hours before the standing committee on procedure and House affairs starting at 10 a.m. ET. CBC News will carry it live.
The former governor gen‐ eral was appointed special rapporteur by Trudeau in March after a series of news stories by Global News and the Globe and Mail alleged the Chinese government en‐ gaged in a range of interfer‐ ence operations in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.
In his first report, released last month, Johnston disput‐ ed several of those reports — including one that alleged Lib‐ eral MP Han Dong urged a Chinese diplomat in February 2021 to hold off on releasing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor from China's custody, and others that claimed fed‐ eral candidates received funds from China during the 2019 federal election cam‐ paign.
Johnston also reported he did not find evidence that cabinet ministers or Trudeau knowingly ignored intelligence. He did call for im‐ provements to the informa‐ tion flow between cabinet and intelligence agencies.
Johnston's report also ruled out holding a public in‐ quiry; he argued that much of any public inquiry would have to be held in private due to the presence of top-secret in‐ formation. Johnston's final re‐ port is due at the end of Octo‐ ber.
Both Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh dis‐ agreed with that call and con‐ tinue to demand that Trudeau call a public inquiry.
Opposition parties voted for Johnston to resign
The opposition parties have attacked Johnston's ap‐ pointment because of his past connections to the prime minister's family and the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Founda‐ tion.
Last week, the House of Commons passed an NDP motion, with Conservative and Bloc Québécois support, calling for Johnston to be ousted from high-profile role.
WATCH | Should David Johnston step down as spe‐ cial rapporteur?
Poilievre accused Johnston of helping "Trudeau cover up the influence by Beijing in our democracy." Singh has said "the appearance of bias is so strong" that Johnston cannot continue.
Despite the vote, Johnston has said he intends to stay on and finish his work. He said he respects the House's right to express its opinion but his mandate comes from the government.
Johnston has tried to dis‐ miss criticisms of his indepen‐ dence. He has said that while he was friends with Pierre Trudeau and skied with the Trudeau family back when Justin Trudeau and his broth‐ ers were children, their rela‐ tionship did not extend much further.
Last week, CBC News re‐ ported that Johnston has hired crisis communications firm Navigator to provide him with "communications advice and support" at taxpayers' expense.
Navigator calls itself a "high-stakes strategic adviso‐ ry and communications firm" that offers a range of services. Its slogan is, "When you can't afford to lose."
When asked Monday if hir‐ ing a crisis communicator was a good use of public funds, Trudeau defended Johnston and accused Poilievre of participating in "baseless smear jobs."
"I'm not going to speak to decisions that the indepen‐ dent special rapporteur and his team are making to man‐ age the toxic climate that they're operating in," said Trudeau.