Conservatives succeed in launching probe into Winnipeg lab documents

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OTTAWA — Conservatives finally succeeded in getting a House of Commons committee to take a closer look at the two high-security scientists who were fired from the Winnipeg National Microbiology Laboratory for their close collaboration with Chinese institutions.

On Tuesday, MPs on the Canada-China Relations committee agreed to undertake a study about the revelations contained in the 600 pages that were released last month detailing why Xiangguo Qiu and her husband, Keding Cheng, were ultimately fired in 2021.

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Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong said that the study will allow MPs to examine any national security breaches and to examine the flow of information and intelligence within the government that prevented the earlier release of these documents.

“My view is that this is the start of the matter, not the end,” he said. “And so really, we’re leaving off where we left three years ago, when the Canada-China committee in the previous parliament asked for the Winnipeg lab documents.

“I believe strongly that the committee is the right place to examine these documents, the right place to hold the government accountable and the right place for us to hear from witnesses and to produce a report with recommendations.”

MPs will be hearing from Minister of Health Mark Holland, Minister of Public Safety Dominic LeBlanc, as well as CSIS director David Vigneault, the prime minister’s national security adviser Nathalie Drouin and top officials from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

They agreed to hold two meetings every week on the study once Parliament resumes next month, and to make it a priority over any other business.

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Chong had attempted to launch a probe into the Winnipeg lab documents in early March in the House of Commons ethics committee, but it was shut down by Liberals and the NDP who claimed that it was not the correct venue nor that the situation was “urgent.”

The New Democrats later claimed that they would have supported Chong’s initiative if it had taken place at the Canada-China Relations committee.

On Tuesday, the Liberals attempted to water down Chong’s motion by limiting the number of meetings and witnesses and also to prevent the committee from automatically summoning witnesses.

“In all seriousness, this cannot turn into a political show. This cannot turn into a process where members are trying to just score political points,” said Liberal MP Yasir Naqvi.

But the Bloc Québécois and the NDP sided with the Conservatives in wanting to hold as many meetings and to hear from as many witnesses as deemed necessary.

Bloc ethics critic René Villemure also criticized Naqvi for suggesting that the opposition wants to turn the process into a political show and said it was an “inappropriate remark.”

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“I find it a bit strange that the member is referring to a political show when it’s the governmental party that sued its own Speaker to cover up the facts (and) used extraordinary measures to ensure that they remain secret,” said Villemure.

For her part, NDP foreign affairs critic Heather McPherson dismissed any suggestion that the ad hoc committee — that she had been a part of to decide which documents could be released to the public — had already studied the national security implications.

“The mandate of the ad hoc committee was not to look at improvements and recommendations for the government. In fact, that work has not been done,” she said.

Recently revealed documents show that Qiu had developed “deep, cooperative relationships” with institutions in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and transferred scientific knowledge and materials to China to benefit the PRC government.

Cheng for his part was considered aware of his wife’s activities given their “close personal and professional relationship.”

The two scientists were escorted from the Winnipeg lab, which is Canada’s only Level 4 laboratory, in 2019 and, following an investigation, their reliability status and secret security clearances were revoked in January 2021. They were subsequently fired.

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Chong said he has many questions for the officials, including why PHAC was only made aware that Qiu was listed as the inventor of a Chinese patent produced in Canada and why it took 10 months for PHAC to secure the location after that first red flag.

He also wants the committee to examine why it took MPs three years to have access to the entire array of documents detailing what happened, and why.

Qiu and Cheng have reportedly left Canada and are using pseudonyms as they attempt to build a new life in China, according to the Globe and Mail. The RCMP, meanwhile, is still investigating the two scientists and offered no further comment.

National Post
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