Anything less than a public inquiry on foreign interference is not enough: Poilievre, Singh

Chinese interference in Canadian elections and society amid calls for a public inquiry, the leaders of the federal Conservative and New Democratic parties say.Their calls come as the RCMP says it has opened an investigation into possible violations of the Security of Information Act concerning recent media reports about alleged foreign interference, and that its probe is not focused on any one security agency.Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh made the comments to reporters on Monday as the House of Commons resumes following a two-week hiatus, and as suspected Chinese foreign interference in Canada is expected to be a hot topic this week.

Read more: NDP not ‘ruling out’ making interference inquiry a must for continuing Liberal support When asked if Conservatives would accept being briefed by security officials regarding the allegations first reported by Global News and the Globe and Mail over recent months, Poilievre said that would be a “trap.”“What they would do is bring opposition MPs or leaders into a room, give them some information and then swear them to secrecy so they couldn’t ever speak about it again,” he said.“Effectively that would be a trick to try and prevent anyone debating the subject anymore, so no, we’re not going to have a situation where Conservatives are told that they have to be quiet about this scandal because they’re sworn to secrecy.”The NDP, which is upholding the minority Liberal government through a supply and confidence agreement struck last year, is calling for the government to hold a public inquiry.The idea also has the backing of the Conservative and Bloc Québécois parties.Singh said on Monday that right now, only a public inquiry would achieve two.