Ahead of Telford testimony, Trudeau says they've discussed foreign interference 'many' times

Ahead of Friday testimony from his chief of staff on foreign election interference, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he and Katie Telford have talked about the issue "many" times over the years.

"The conversations I have with my chief of staff, and with my entire government, and with our defence and security experts, are ongoing," Trudeau told reporters on Thursday. "We have been talking about foreign interference for years."

The prime minister said he's had "many" conversations specifically with Telford.

• Capital Dispatch: Sign up for in-depth political coverage of Parliament Hill

"Many of them, over long periods of times, over many years, because it's an issue that needs to be taken seriously."

After weeks of resistance, and ahead of a vote in the House of Commons that could have compelled it to happen, Trudeau's office agreed that Telford would testify before the Procedure and House Affairs Committee. 

The committee has been studying the issue for months, and has wanted to hear from Telford about what she knew and when, in light of the prime minister dodging various efforts from reporters and opposition parties to offer specifics.

He's previously said the key questions around the allegations of what he did or didn't do, knew or didn't know, would be answered in "responsible ways" through the processes his government has advanced.

Over the last few months, Trudeau has rolled out a suite of measures and reviews into the issue of foreign meddling in response to calls for the federal Liberals to take seriously the numerous headlines and accusations surrounding China's attempts to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 federal campaigns.

Federal officials have restated numerous times that despite foreign efforts, the integrity of both elections was upheld, pointing to various public service and expert oversight mechanisms set up since 2015 to help monitor, detect, and counter attempts to interfere in Canadian affairs.

It's expected Telford's appearance—scheduled for two hours starting at 12 p.m. ET—will be done under oath. Trudeau's top aide is appearing on her own, with no other witnesses scheduled for Friday. 

The PMO has already cautioned that there will be "serious constraints" on what Telford would be able to say in public about sensitive intelligence matters.

This won't be the first time Telford has testified before a parliamentary committee, or in a situation where she's sworn to tell the truth.

She’s appeared previously before MPs to speak about the WE Charity controversy as well as the issue of sexual misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces. Most recently, she testified under oath as part of the Public Order Emergency Commission into the government’s use of the Emergencies Act.