O’Toole says Canadian intelligence found “active” voter suppression by Beijing

Erin O’Toole was briefed Friday by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) on China targeting him during the 2021 campaign, according to a source close to the sitting MP.

Former Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole says Canada’s intelligence found an “active campaign of voter suppression” against him and his party in the 2021 election.

O’Toole made the comments Tuesday from the floor of the House of Commons, within which MPs are protected by parliamentary privilege from civil or criminal prosecution under freedom of speech provisions. His speech comes after a briefing with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) last week.

“I also believe my privileges as a Member and officer of Parliament were infringed by the government’s unwillingness or inability to act on the intelligence related to foreign interference,” O’Toole said.

“The briefing confirmed to me what I had long suspected – that my party, several of my caucus colleagues and myself were the target of a sophisticated misinformation and voter suppression campaign orchestrated by the People’s Republic of China before and during the 2021 general election.”

O’Toole led the Conservatives into the 2021 general election after winning the party leadership just a year before.

Part of O’Toole’s leadership pitch was to take a tough stance against Beijing, including recognizing the Chinese regime’s persecution of the country’s Uyghur minority as a genocide, repatriating and diversifying Canadian supply chains away from China, and cracking down on foreign influence.

Those pledges came through in the Conservatives’ 2021 election platform, which contained 31 references to “China” and 10 references to “Chinese.”

“We must stand up to the Communist government of China,” the platform read.