Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said there is no timeline for when a foreign influence registry would be implemented, saying only that the government has begun public consultations.
Mendicino was asked if he was committed to a foreign agent registry during an appearance on The West Block, a Global News program, on March 12.
“That’s precisely the purpose of the exercise, is to have a thoughtful conversation with all Canadians and stakeholders so that it will inform the creation of a foreign registry,” he said.
The minister then moved the discussion to mentioning that there is anxiety and fear and concern among Chinese-Canadians of “being stigmatized by virtue of who they are.”
“I made that announcement alongside my colleague Minister [Mary] Ng, who pointed out that members of the Chinese-Canadian community are indeed very worried about being painted with the same brush when it comes to these allegations. That’s unfair. They have every right to participate in society fully, including in our politics,” said Mendicino.
He said the consultation process regarding a foreign registry started officially on March 10 and will continue until May 9.
Mendicino, whose office did not respond before press time, would not commit to having a registry in place before the next election, or even before summer.
“I think we’ve committed to having a very focused conversation around how it is that we want to inform the creation of this foreign registry,” he said.
The government has been under pressure in recent weeks after media reports were published one after another with allegations of Chinese interfere having occurred in the last two federal elections and of money being funnelled to some candidates.
A foreign agent registry would require individuals or entities working on behalf of a foreign authority to influence Canada’s policies, officials, or democratic processes to register with the Canadian government.
In a March 10 news release, Public Safety Canada said it has launched public consultations on a foreign influence transparency registry in Canada, saying that these consultations “with key stakeholders and the Canadian public will inform the path forward, including potential legislation.”
“The input received through this consultation will help develop new measures to bolster Canada’s national security,” said the news release.
The government has opened an online portal for public submissions.
Medicino said the government has to “get the threshold right, that we get the parameters of the authorities right.”
Reporters questioned Mendicino on March 10 as to why his government has delayed the creation of a foreign agent registry until now, as allies like the United States have had a Foreign Agents Registration Act since 1938 and Australia created a “Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme” in 2018.
“There’s no doubt that the threat involving foreign interference has evolved over the last number of years,” Mendicino responded.
The Liberal government announced as early as February 2021 that it was “actively considering” the creation of a foreign agent registry. Almost two years later, in December 2022, Mendicino said Ottawa was preparing to hold public consultations on the possible creation of such a registry.
In recent months, a series of reports by The Globe and Mail based on national intelligence sources has alleged that Beijing implemented a sophisticated strategy to interfere in the 2021 federal election. A Global News report last November also indicated that Trudeau and his cabinet were briefed months ago by national intelligence officials about the Chinese Communist Party’s interference in Canada’s 2019 federal election.
Facing mounting pressure to hold a public inquiry, Trudeau announced that an independent special rapporteur will be named in the coming weeks to look into foreign interference in Canadian elections.
The Canadian Press, Andrew Chen, and Peter Wilson contributed to this report.