OTTAWA—Former Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole says the federal government’s point-person on alleged foreign interference – former Governor General David Johnston – only met with him as a “box-checking exercise,” and that he doesn’t trust his study of the issue to seriously address concerns about Canadian democracy.
O’Toole, the Oshawa MP who led the Conservatives in the 2021 election, added his voice to the chorus of opposition skepticism about how the Liberal government is handling allegations of Chinese state interference, which has grown in recent months into a political firestorm fuelled by a series of intelligence leaks to the media.
"We need a full public inquiry to get to the bottom of Beijing's interference in our democracy. And that's what I will deliver when I am prime minister," Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre vows as he reacts to David Johnston's recommendation against holding inquiry.#cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/0abEXpv1pg
— CPAC (@CPAC_TV) May 23, 2023
