Liberals, opposition House leaders meet to discuss foreign interference inquiry

House leaders for the main federal opposition parties met Friday evening with the Liberals to resume discussions on calling a public inquiry into foreign interference, Liberal and NDP officials tell CBC News.

According to a report by Radio-Canada, the negotiations over the framework and mandate of a public inquiry are close to completion and the meeting was about fine-tuning areas of agreement.

Radio-Canada reports the parties still haven't settled on someone to lead the process and the Conservatives have not yet submitted their list of proposed candidates.

An NDP official — who spoke on the condition they not be named due to the sensitivity of the talks — told CBC News that since the House of Commons rose for the summer, the discussions between the parties have been less productive.

The unnamed official accused Conservatives and Liberals of being more focused on scoring political points than getting answers.

The official said the NDP wants the discussion to be treated like a labour negotiation focused on finding a resolution, rather than a political brawl between Liberals and Conservatives.

A Liberal official (who also spoke on the condition they not be named) said that Canadians should not expect a major news announcement out of Friday's talks.

Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc dialled in from Japan, where he is attending meetings. The House leaders are expected to update party leaders on the state of the talks, the Liberal official said.

A spokesperson for LeBlanc told CBC News following the meeting that the talks were productive.

The Chinese government has been accused of attempting to influence the results of the 2019 and 2021 federal elections and of meddling in Canada's affairs. In May, Canada expelled Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei after an intelligence report accused him of trying to target the family of Conservative MP Michael Chong, who has been critical of China's treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority.

The Liberals resisted repeated opposition calls for a public inquiry into foreign interference and instead appointed former governor general David Johnston as special rapporteur to advise on the matter and decide if an inquiry was warranted.

His initial report on May 23 advised against an inquiry. Outraged opposition parties accused Johnston of being too close to the Liberals. On June 9, Johnston announced he would resign his position at the end of that month, citing a "highly partisan atmosphere" surrounding his work.

All parties agree that the 2019 and 2021 federal election results were not compromised. But opposition MPs say a public inquiry into foreign interference is the only way to maintain Canadians' confidence in the electoral system.

Discussions between the parties on the details of such an inquiry have so far failed to deliver an agreement.