MPs need to plug legislative 'holes' to address foreign interference before next election: party reps

The House committee studying foreign election interference heard from top 2019 and 2021 Liberal and Conservative campaign directors on Tuesday, with party officials from both camps speaking about the need for politicians to come together to address any "legislative gaps" ahead of the next vote.

The House committee studying foreign election interference heard from top 2019 and 2021 Liberal and Conservative campaign directors on Tuesday, with party officials from both camps speaking about the need for politicians to come together to address any "legislative gaps" ahead of the next vote.

"I know we're spending a lot of time trying to find out who knew what, when, and where. I feel a lot of efforts should be going into, as legislators, putting together legislation to plug these holes. We're all under threat here," said Fred DeLorey, the Conservatives' 2021 national campaign manager.

"All parties could be impacted by this in the next election. It can come from different entities, different countries, and I really wish we could see a more collaborative approach to really drill down on what the issues are, and how we solve them," he told MPs on the Procedure and House Affairs Committee (PROC). "I'm really concerned about the next election, not the past one."

These comments echoed a sentiment expressed by the Liberal Party's 2019 national campaign director Jeremy Broadhurst, who also testified on Tuesday. He said that all political parties have a role to play in taking foreign interference seriously and preventing it from festering during federal races.

In his testimony, Broadhurst—who is now a senior adviser to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau— said the Liberals "stand ready" to play a role in improving Canada's safeguards.

He agreed that there could be improvements to the various panels and protocols installed since 2015, while noting work is already underway to consider this through a series of measures Trudeau implemented earlier this year, in light of concerns raised about Chinese meddling attempts in the last two campaigns. 

Broadhurst also noted that prior to the Liberals coming to power, no such mechanisms existed.