Interim RCMP commissioner Duheme 'very concerned' about foreign interference
Interim RCMP commissioner Duheme 'very concerned' about foreign interference
As questions continue to swirl around the issue of other countries' meddling in Canadian affairs, interim RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme says he's "very, very concerned" about foreign interference, and would like to see the national force be able to use intelligence as evidence in its investigations.
In an interview on CTV's Question Period with Vassy Kapelos airing on Sunday, Duheme was asked if, given all that has recently been alleged regarding China interfering in federal elections and the years of warnings from various national security agencies, he thinks a public inquiry is warranted.
Duheme said that while it is not up to him to judge what steps the federal government should take, he shares others’ worries about the issue of foreign interference.
"I've seen it through a criminal lens, as to what we've been involved with; foreign actor interference. And I also see it through when the service briefs the round table at the deputy minister level. So yes, I am very, very concerned."
He said he'd like to see the work underway to examine how to improve the ways Canadian national security agencies collaborate and share information about foreign interference include looking at ways to change legislation to allow the RCMP to use intelligence garnered by CSIS, as evidence.
As it stands, information collected by Canada's spy agency may be informative, but it often cannot be used in criminal investigations.
"I believe there are efforts to be made to change legislation," Duheme said. "This has been discussed for numerous years. And there's good work that's been done with the service [CSIS] and as well as the RCMP. But, I think we have to take it one step further and really, really, really drill down and see what the options are, so we can overcome the question of intel into evidence."
Duheme said he'd "definitely" like to be able to use more intelligence as evidence, but he understands the challenges around how that intelligence is sometimes collected. It's something the two federal agencies have been working on for several years, he said.
"You don't want to reveal any trade secrets of how this is collected. And again, for a criminal investigation, you have to be able to demonstrate how the investigation began. And with the full and frank disclosure that we face… that is challenging sometimes when you want to use some intelligence that's not accessible or cannot be used for law enforcement purposes," Duheme said.
"I'm hoping we can land [on] a solution where we can use intelligence in our criminal investigations."
Conversation around delineating the difference between intelligence and evidence has come up during the recent parliamentary committee hearings on the issue of foreign interference, with numerous top federal security officials cautioning MPs that taking intelligence "out of context" or without the appropriate caveats can be "very pernicious."
MPs were warned that intelligence that CSIS or other national security agencies collect "rarely paints a full or concrete or actionable picture" and "almost always comes heavily caveated and qualified."
"Canadians would be better served if the debate took into account what intelligence is and what intelligence is not. And that misreading or taking out of context an intel report can lead to divisiveness, which in itself, plays into the hands of some of our adversaries," David Morrison, member of the Critical Election Incident Public Protocol and deputy minister of foreign affairs told MPs during an extended committee hearing on the issue in early March.
During his portion of testimony on the same day, Duheme told MPs that the RCMP had not received any "actionable evidence" that Mounties could use to launch an investigation, regarding foreign election interference in the last two federal campaigns. That remains the case.
Though, the interim RCMP commissioner pointed to other instances where the RCMP has investigated alleged foreign interference, including charging a Hydro-Quebec employee with spying for China, and the instances of China operating overseas "police stations" in major Canadian cities.
"We are investigating any foreign interference that is brought to our attention, and again with respect to having the right information to launch a criminal investigation," he said.
A New Democrat MP is trying to convince his colleagues to change the rules that govern the House of Commons in a series of ways he says would instill 'democratic controls' on the prime minister's 'unfettered' powers.
Monday morning, the Public Service Alliance of Canada announced it had reached a 'tentative' agreement with the federal government for the 120,000 picketing Treasury Board workers who, since April 19, had been engaged in one of the largest strikes in Canadian history. Here's a rundown of the developments from Parliament Hill as they happened.
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.
In the 2023 federal budget, the government is unveiling continued deficit spending targeted at Canadians' pocketbooks, public health care and the clean economy.
U.S President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have announced updates on a number of cross-border issues, after a day of meetings on Parliament Hill.
Danielle Smith's win in the Alberta election hands her the most starkly divided province confronting any premier in Canada, writes commentator Don Martin.
Special rapporteur David Johnston didn't recommend public inquiry knowing it was a pathetically insufficient response for a foreign democratic assault of this magnitude, writes Don Martin in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
To frame a few new illustrations on pages tucked inside a passport as proof of a Liberal plot to purge the Canadian historical record seems like a severe stretch, writes Don Martin in an exclusive column for CTVNews.ca.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino is a bright former federal prosecutor, who was destined to be a star in Justin Trudeau's cabinet. But in an opinion column on CTVNews.ca, Don Martin argues Mendicino has taken a stunning fall from grace, stumbling badly on important issues just 18 months into the job.
It's the most peculiar of elections with the frontrunner and her main opponent being the same person, writes columnist Don Martin. 'In the looming Alberta showdown, it's Premier Danielle Smith versus her mouth.'
At the moment, wildfires are burning across six provinces and one territory in Canada — and they’re still spreading in what’s being called an unprecedented fire season. While firefighters work tirelessly to battle the merciless flames and prevent further destruction, scientists say the wildfires are linked to climate change and that this will be the new normal.
A 38-year-old sergeant in the Canadian Army was fined $3,000 and issued a severe reprimand after he made what a military judge described as 'utterly disgusting' anti-Jewish comments while conducting an infantry training course in 2021.
The number of people in Canada with inflammatory bowel disease is increasing rapidly and is expected to grow to 470,000 by 2035, according to a new report from Crohn's and Colitis Canada.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he raised concerns about reports that LGBTQ2S+ rights and democracy are under threat in Poland during a Friday visit with its prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, in Toronto.
As more Canadians pass their family cottages down to the next generation, 'major shifts' in the ownership of recreational homes will occur, according to Re/Max. But amid concerns around the cost of housing, some may be wondering whether they can afford to keep that family cottage. Here's what younger generations need to know about inheriting a recreational property and the market today.
Pierre Poilievre is off to Manitoba to rally Conservative supporters ahead of a byelection that Maxime Bernier is hoping will send him back to Parliament. The far-right People's Party of Canada leader lost his Quebec seat in the 2019 federal vote and lost again in the 2021 election.
A bronze statue of Queen Elizabeth that was toppled and damaged by protesters two years ago was put back in its place Friday on the grounds of the Manitoba legislature after a lengthy set of repairs.
A 38-year-old sergeant in the Canadian Army was fined $3,000 and issued a severe reprimand after he made what a military judge described as 'utterly disgusting' anti-Jewish comments while conducting an infantry training course in 2021.
Police on Friday described how they exchanged fire with a gunman who carried out the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history, frantic to get wounded worshippers to safety as they shot and neutralized the suspect.
The chief diversity officer of the nation's oldest state-supported military college, Virginia Military Institute, has turned in her resignation amid a debate among alumni over the school's diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
Two passenger trains derailed Friday in India, killing at least 50 people and trapping hundreds of others inside more than a dozen damaged rail cars, officials said.
The U.S. Department of Justice has informed former Vice President Mike Pence 's legal team that it will not pursue criminal charges related to the discovery of classified documents at his Indiana home.
Nearly four years after Jeffrey Epstein's death, thousands of pages of records obtained by The Associated Press are shedding new light on the financier's time behind bars and a frantic response by federal corrections officials to his death.
The UN Security Council called Friday for an immediate cease-fire in Sudan to be followed by a permanent halt to hostilities and fresh efforts to reach a lasting democratic political settlement in the conflict-wracked country.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he raised concerns about reports that LGBTQ2S+ rights and democracy are under threat in Poland during a Friday visit with its prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, in Toronto.
Pierre Poilievre is off to Manitoba to rally Conservative supporters ahead of a byelection that Maxime Bernier is hoping will send him back to Parliament. The far-right People's Party of Canada leader lost his Quebec seat in the 2019 federal vote and lost again in the 2021 election.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he is committed to keeping David Johnston in place as Canada's special rapporteur on foreign interference, despite a majority of MPs voting in favour of his stepping down from the gig.
The number of people in Canada with inflammatory bowel disease is increasing rapidly and is expected to grow to 470,000 by 2035, according to a new report from Crohn's and Colitis Canada.
Racial bias built into a common medical test for lung function is likely leading to fewer Black patients getting care for breathing problems, a study published Thursday suggests.
Researchers at Carleton University's Department of Electronics in Ottawa created a ground-breaking testing device to detect early signs of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s through biomolecular activities in a person’s saliva.
Twitter's head of trust and safety, Ella Irwin, told Reuters on Thursday that she has resigned from the social media company, which has faced criticism for lax protections against harmful content since billionaire Elon Musk acquired it in October.
Deep in an open coal mine in southern Greece, researchers have discovered the antiquities-rich country's oldest archaeological site, which dates to 700,000 years ago and is associated with modern humans' hominin ancestors. The find announced Thursday would drag the dawn of Greek archaeology back by as much as a quarter of a million years, although older hominin sites have been discovered elsewhere in Europe. The oldest, in Spain, dates to more than a million years ago.
In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, director Christopher Nolan offers a guide to his favourite formats, explaining why it matters and even where he likes to sit so that audiences don't feel like they need a film school degree (or one in theoretical physics) before settling on a theatre.
Cynthia Weil, a Grammy-winning lyricist of notable range and endurance who enjoyed a decades-long partnership with husband Barry Mann and helped write 'You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling,' 'On Broadway,' 'Walking in the Rain' and dozens of other hits, has died at age 82.
Air Canada says travellers should be prepared for further flight disruptions as it works to return service to normal following a technical malfunction Thursday.
The wildfires plaguing residents in Alberta and Nova Scotia are part of a larger trend that's driving up the cost of home insurance as extreme weather becomes more common, insurance experts say.
Memphis guard Ja Morant not being charged with a crime for twice displaying a gun on social media will not prevent the NBA from handing down more discipline, Commissioner Adam Silver said Friday.
The Detroit Grand Prix, coming off Josef Newgarden's win at the Indianapolis 500, provides drivers and teams with a chance for a fresh start for the rest of the season.
The latest sanctions, if any, that the NBA plans to levy against Memphis guard Ja Morant for his second instance of displaying a gun on social media will be announced shortly after the finals, Commissioner Adam Silver said Thursday.
America apparently needs more car seats. So, when Volkswagen unveiled the ID. Buzz, a retro-styled electric van, last year, it noted that the version for the North American market would be longer and would have three rows of seats.
