Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre accuses Justin Trudeau of taking Canadian Security Intelligence Agency (CSIS) leaks more seriously than Chinese meddling per se, and still calls for a public inquiry.

• Also read: “The government seems to be playing hide-and-seek,” says Blanchet

• Also read: No public inquiry into interference at this time

“It’s incredible that the intelligence community is as concerned as they are willing to be [prendre] those kinds of risks to their personal interest to expose the attack on our democracy that Justin Trudeau is trying to camouflage,” Mr Poilievre said in a news conference on Tuesday.

The theory put forward by Mr. Poilievre and other observers is as follows: The multiple recent revelations of the Globe & Mail are the product of CSIS officials frustrated by the Trudeau administration’s inaction on China’s interference in Canadian affairs.

There is no unequivocal proof that this is the case, but CSIS Director David Vigneault, in response to a question in committee last week about the relationship between his service and Prime Minister Trudeau’s office, had suggested that it was ” ways for people to express their dissatisfaction”.

leaks on Globe & Mail are now the subject of two separate investigations, one by CSIS itself and another by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

Mr. Trudeau himself has snubbed CSIS twice in recent weeks.

“In the history of our country, we have never had an intelligence agency so preoccupied with a prime minister and his collaboration with a foreign power willing to release this type of information,” Mr Poilievre added.

The latter regretted the appointment of a “special rapporteur” announced yesterday by the Prime Minister and stressed the importance of a public and independent inquiry.

He accused Mr Trudeau of wanting “a secret and controlled process” to better control information.

“The only vigorous investigation he wants is to target whistleblowers. That’s Justin Trudeau’s priority,” the Conservative leader added. “It’s not about protecting democracy from foreign interference, it’s about protecting ourselves politically by attacking and destroying the brave whistleblowers who have already leaked these secrets.”

The block wants to have a say

Yves-François Blanchet reiterated that the person appointed “special rapporteur” should be elected by all parliamentarians and not just by the prime minister and his team.

“Do you really think the Prime Minister of Canada will appoint an independent special rapporteur without making a phone call? Without asking him two or three questions?” asked the leader of the Bloc Québécois in a press conference.

He said stories of Chinese interference in Canadian affairs could undermine Canada’s relationship with its allies.

“This weakness can damage the trust and quality of the relationship Canada has with its allies,” he said.