Trudeau wants Poilievre informed about his elected officials linked to foreign interference

Photo: Sean Kilpatrick The Canadian Press “With the Conservative leader's inexplicable decision not to get his security clearance, he is putting Canadians, including his own MPs, at risk,” Justin Trudeau explained in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

Michel Saba – The Canadian Press in Ottawa

Published at 3:40 p.m. Updated at 5:20 p.m.

• Canada

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau launched a full-on attack on the Conservative leader by revealing that he has asked intelligence services to inform Pierre Poilievre “as well as they can, […] maybe names” on foreign interference issues affecting his elected officials, even though he refuses to request a security clearance.

“With the Conservative leader's inexplicable decision not to get his security clearance, he is putting Canadians at risk, including his own MPs,” Trudeau said in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

The prime minister said protecting Canadians is “one of the fundamental responsibilities” of everyone who sits in the House of Commons and that it is essential that Poilievre be able to “better protect his MPs.”

Two weeks ago, Trudeau revealed to the public inquiry into foreign interference that he knew the names of past and present Conservative Party parliamentarians and candidates who are linked to foreign interference.

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The prime minister also said that parliamentarians from other parties, including including liberals, had also been singled out.

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The questioner questioned

During question period, the roles were reversed as Mr. Trudeau began to tirelessly question the Conservative leader for nearly an hour.

“Why did the Leader of the Opposition choose not to get a security clearance when the security of his own MPs is at stake ?,” he asked.

Mr. Poilievre responded that the prime minister fears for his “political security” as Liberals try to show him the door, and that “he’s desperately trying” to change the subject.

“If he wants to release the names, he can do it legally now in the House of Commons,” the Conservative leader also claimed.

The Canadian Press asked his team to clarify what the leader was basing his claim on, but had not received a response at press time.

In any case, Mr. Trudeau was pleased that his opponent was addressing the subject he wanted to discuss. “Okay! Now we’re getting something,” he said.

“Unfortunately, he’s willing to put in harm’s way the agents, the officers, the sources who put their lives on the line to keep Canadians safe,” Trudeau continued. “There’s a reason we don’t release classified information in places where our adversaries are watching us.”

In subsequent exchanges, Poilievre ignored questions and returned to his attacks on various topics.

“It’s fascinating to see the lengths the Conservative leader will go to avoid the topic of national security, to avoid the topic of the safety of Canadians, to avoid the topic of foreign interference,” Trudeau added.

According to Mr. Poilievre, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) Act allows the government to warn Canadians about specific risks of foreign interference without requiring them to take an “oath of confidentiality” or “control what they say.”

Pierre Poilievre is now the only leader of a political party represented in the House of Commons who has not obtained his security clearance.

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet obtained it last Wednesday, his team said, and the leaders of the New Democratic Party and the Green Party of Canada have had them for several months.