By Canadian Press

Liberals to begin public consultations on setting up a foreign influence registry

Mar 10, 2023 | 6:30 AM

OTTAWA — Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino is launching public consultations on a foreign influence transparency registry to help prevent other countries from meddling in Canadian affairs.

The Liberals have been under intense scrutiny in recent weeks over allegations, detailed in media reports citing unnamed security sources and highly classified documents, that they did not act when warned that China was trying to interfere in the last two federal elections.

Mendicino says the consultation, which he hopes all Canadians will take part in, will run today through to May 9 and include a virtual portal on the Department of Public Safety’s website.

Under such a registry, people who act on behalf of a foreign state to advance its goals would have to disclose their ties to the government employing them.

The idea of such a registry, which exists in Australia and the United States, is to make those dealings more transparent, with the possibility of fines or even prison time for failing to comply.

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The Liberal government signalled late last year it wanted to hear from experts and the broader public, including members of affected communities, on creating a registry.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 10, 2023.

The Canadian Press