Government pitches foreign influence registry, new powers for CSIS in attempt to curb foreign interference

The federal government unveiled a long-anticipated bill Monday aimed at curb‐ ing foreign interference in Canadian political life from school boards to the House of Commons.

If passed, the bill would introduce new foreign inter‐ ference offence, shake up how Canada's spy agency col‐ lects and shares intelligence and launch a long-antici‐ pated foreign influence transparency registry.

Public Safety Minister Do‐ minic LeBlanc tabled Bill C-70 just days after a public in‐ quiry said attempts by other countries to meddle in Canada's past two federal elections undermined Cana‐ dians' trust in democracy.

The bill would make it an indictable offence under the Security of Information Act punishable by up to life in prison - for anyone to, at the direction of a foreign entity, engage in "surreptitious or deceptive conduct" to influ‐ ence a political or govern‐ mental process, which in‐ cludes party nomination con‐ tests.

WATCH | Minister asked if new foreign interference bill can be passed before next election

Party nominations have been flagged as a source of concern by the ongoing pub‐ lic inquiry into foreign inter‐ ference. In her first report, released Friday, Justice Mar‐ ie-Josée Hogue (who is lead‐ ing the inquiry) said she could not rule out the possi‐ bility that China interfered in the 2019 Liberal nomination contest for the riding of Don Valley North.

The bill also would make it an offence for a foreign en‐ tity or proxy to try to influ‐ ence a school's governance which the legislation defines as anything from a school board up to universities and other higher learning institu‐ tions.

The act also proposes up‐ dating the Criminal Code to prevent sabotage attacks on critical infrastructure. It would also amend the Secu‐ rity of Information Act to cov‐ er the inappropriate sharing of military technology and knowledge.

Former Canadian Security Intelligence Service director Ward Elcock said creating new offences gives Canada a shot at prosecutions.

"In the past, even if you found out, there's nothing to do about it, they're not com‐ mitting a criminal act," he told CBC's Power & Politics.

CSIS would be able to disclose more informa‐ tion

CSIS has long called for new powers and the ability to share information with tar‐ gets of foreign interference apart from the federal gov‐ ernment, such as re‐ searchers, businesses, In‐ digenous communities and local governments.

Bill C-70 would allow CSIS to disclose sensitive informa‐ tion beyond the federal gov‐ ernment in the interest of building up resiliency against foreign interference.

"A resilient and informed population is our best de‐ fence against foreign inter‐ ference," said LeBlanc.

That portion of the legisla‐ tion received almost immedi‐ ate praise from the Business Council of Canada.

"Despite CSIS possessing the knowledge and expertise to help Canadian companies withstand growing security threats, CSIS' outdated legis‐ lation means that business leaders are left fending for themselves," said council president Goldy Hyder.

"With new threat intelli‐ gence sharing authorities, CSIS could communicate more specific and tangible in‐ formation with Canadian companies. This would give business leaders a clearer understanding of the grow‐ ing threat, as well as the pro‐ tective measures that could be taken to better safeguard their employees, customers, and the communities in which they operate."

Elcock said he isn't con‐ vinced the changes will make life easier for the spy agency - which still has to juggle ac‐ tive investigations.

"It will be more challeng‐ ing for the service because it will have to take some deci‐ sions about what informa‐ tion it shares and doesn't share,"he said.

"There's the potential to create problems in an investi‐ gation by sharing too much."

WATCH | New bill up‐ dates sabotage provisions in the Criminal Code

A core part of the bill would require those acting on behalf of foreign states to influence Canadian politics or government to register with the federal government.

Such foreign agent registries are in place in the U.S. and Australia.

Those caught violating the rules of the proposed new foreign influence trans‐ parency registry could risk millions of dollars in financial penalties and prison time. Diplomats would be exempt under international law.

Monday's bill proposes appointing a foreign influ‐ ence transparency commis‐ sioner in charge of over‐ seeing a new registry system.

Registry not a panacea, says activist

The registry has been a long time coming for people like Gloria Fung, president of Canada-Hong Kong Link even if she doesn't think it's a perfect solution.

The activist said she's faced death threats for speaking out against the Chi‐ nese government.

"I have also been con‐ stantly warned by anony‐ mous callers not to interfere with the Hong Kong or China issues, even though I'm now a proud Canadian," she said. "The registry is not a panacea. It is an important first stop to combat foreign interference."

The Liberals are also proposing changes to close what it calls "gaps" in the way CSIS collects, retains and uses data on Canadians.

The government says in background documents it is pitching the changes so "CSIS can successfully operate in a digital world," but the changes will likely attract scrutiny from civil liberty groups in the coming days and weeks.

The bill arrives just days after the public inquiry inves‐ tigating foreign meddling is‐ sued its first report, which found foreign interference "undermined the right of voters to have an electoral ecosystem free from coer‐ cion or covert influence."

Hogue stressed that for‐ eign interference attempts from China, India, Russia and others did not affect which political party formed the government in the 2019 and 2021 general elections.

Hogue said none of the

evidence she's heard to date suggests officials acted in "bad faith" or that informa‐ tion was deliberately and im‐ properly withheld.

"But it does suggest that on some occasions, informa‐ tion related to foreign inter‐ ference did not reach its in‐ tended recipient, while on others the information was not properly understood by those who received it," she wrote.

"These are serious issues that need to be investigated and considered."

WATCH | Former CSIS di‐ rector weighs in on new bill