Elizabeth May says there is ‘no list’ of MPs in NSICOP report

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OTTAWA — Green Party co-Leader Elizabeth May said the unredacted version of a bombshell report on foreign interference shows that “fewer than a handful” of MPs may have been compromised, but that it “falls far short” of disloyalty to Canada.

May was the first party leader to read the entire report by the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) that found that some parliamentarians were “semi-witting or witting” participants in foreign interference efforts in Canadian politics.

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May, after obtaining her top-secret security clearance to see the unredacted report, told reporters on Tuesday that she was limited in what she could or could not say publicly.

But she insisted that the few names that she saw in the report went from “witting and unwitting to wilful blindness” when it came to foreign influence, and that there should have been questions about what MPs were aware of, such as busing in people during nomination contests.

In any case, she said there is no “list” of names of treacherous MPs in the document.

“Having read the full unredacted National Security Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians report, for myself, I can say I have no worries about anyone in the House of Commons. There is no list of MPs who have shown disloyalty to Canada,” she said.

May added that she was “vastly relieved” that the most “worrying case” in the report was the former MP who proactively provided privileged information to a foreign operative.

She said that person should be fully investigated and prosecuted, and that their name should come out publicly. That person’s name was not included in the unredacted report.

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May said that while she is “in awe” of the committee’s work on the file, it has been “eclipsed by a totally understandable media firestorm which in my view, is overblown.”

The federal government has been under pressure to release the names of MPs mentioned in the NSICOP report, which it has refused to do. Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said he could face criminal prosecution if he ever decides to disclose that information.

For now, the government and opposition parties agree with the Bloc Québécois’ motion to ask Justice Marie-Josée Hogue to look into the allegations contained in the NSICOP report as part of her work as commissioner of the public inquiry into foreign interference.

May said that while she was intending to vote in favour of the Bloc’s motion, she changed her mind after reading the unredacted version of the NSICOP report. The motion was adopted by all parties, with only May and Green MP Mike Morrice voting against.

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“I think it’s throwing a hot potato in the wrong soup pot,” she said. “Madam Justice Hogue has a lot on her plate and short timelines … Where would we be at the end of the day when she reports back? Probably where we are now.”

She said that is why parliamentarians should take responsibility for that “hot potato.”

May suggested that they “fortify the binding nature” of their oath when they are sworn in as members of Parliament. She also said that the ethics commissioner should work with the intelligence community and be prepared to issue reports on matters of interference.

May also said that, on a personal level, she is against sponsored travel for MPs, as it could leave them more vulnerable to influence from foreign countries.

“Is there really a free lunch in politics? Do we just think this is what politicians get as a perk? I just think it is bad practice and while we’re tightening up the rules and looking at foreign influence and foreign interference, I think they should not be allowed.”

May said she reimbursed the costs of a trip she took in 2018 that was sponsored by the Palestinian Authority to visit disputed territories, and that others did the same.

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Finally, she called on all other party leaders to follow her lead and read the full NSICOP report — arguing that “a commitment to not knowing something isn’t wise.”

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh will be receiving his confidential briefing on Wednesday. He already said that he would not hesitate to kick out any of his MPs who were found to have “wittingly” collaborated with foreign powers.

Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet is in the process of receiving his top-secret security clearance. He said that he wants to make sure none of his MPs are under foreign influence. If that was the case, he is asking them not to run in the next election.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had access to the report months ago.

Only Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has refused to get his security clearance to see the full contents of the NSICOP report — arguing that he would be bound to secrecy.

National Post
calevesque@postmedia.com

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