Former Conservative leadership candidate Patrick Brown to appear at committee probing foreign interference

Former Conservative leadership candidate Patrick Brown says he will appear before a House committee looking into foreign interference.

The House of Commons standing committee on public safety and national security is looking into allegations that agents of the Government of India have engaged in electoral interference and criminal activities in Canada. Last week, MPs on that committee summoned Brown, currently mayor of Brampton, Ont., after he declined previous invitations.

In a social media post on Monday, Brown said he has now agreed to appear before the committee — although he still questions whether his testimony would be useful to the committee.

"I have no new evidence to contribute to the committee's proceedings and am concerned that my appearance has been sought for political reasons," he said in the statement.

He argued that the public inquiry into foreign interference being led by Commissioner Marie-Josée Hogue would have been a more appropriate venue. He said he was never contacted by Hogue to testify.

Agents of the Indian government allegedly attempted to derail Brown's campaign for the leadership of the Conservative Party in 2022, according to sources who spoke to Radio-Canada.

The National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) cited "India's alleged interference in a Conservative Party of Canada leadership race" in its explosive report on foreign interference. A redacted version of that report was made public in June 2024.

"CSIS did not advise the Conservative Party of Canada of any intelligence suggesting there was foreign interference in the leadership contest," Sarah Fischer, director of communications for the Conservative Party, said at the time. "This is the first time we have heard about it."

Radio-Canada has no evidence indicating that Pierre Poilievre, now the Conservative leader, was aware of the alleged actions of India's agents. He handily won the 2022 leadership race on the first ballot with 68 per cent of the available points. Poilievre's office told Radio-Canada it had no knowledge of any attempts by Indian government representatives to undermine Brown's campaign.

Brown said in his statement that he has no reason to believe that foreign interference affected the results of the 2022 leadership race.

Brown was disqualified by Conservative Party authorities in July 2022 following allegations of "serious wrongdoing" linked to election financing. At the time, Brown accused the "party establishment" of "wanting to make sure Poilievre did not lose."

Sources told Radio-Canada that Brown's national campaign co-chair, Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner, allegedly was pressured to withdraw her support for Brown. The Alberta MP denied those allegations in a written statement to Radio-Canada.

WATCH | Rempel Garner walks away from journalist attempting to ask question: 

Rempel Garner walks away from journalist attempting to ask question

8 days ago

Duration 0:11

Ahead of a parliamentary committee meeting on Monday in Ottawa, Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner walks away from CBC journalist Chris Rands as he attempts to ask a question about allegations that she was pressured to withdraw her support for Patrick Brown during his 2022 Conservative Party of Canada leadership race. Rempel Garner categorically denies the allegation. Sources who spoke to Radio-Canada say agents of the Indian government allegedly attempted to derail Brown’s campaign for the party leadership in 2022.

A CBC News journalist approached Rempel Garner before the start of a separate committee meeting on Monday to ask about the allegations. Before the journalist could mention anything about the allegations, Rempel Garner rapidly got up from her seat and left the room. She later appeared at the committee virtually.

Rempel Garner quit her position as co-chair of Brown's campaign in June 2022 before the leadership race had concluded.

In her statement to Radio-Canada, the MP said she left Brown's campaign on her "own volition."

"In no instance was I coerced in any manner, by anyone, at any time. I am an experienced parliamentarian, seasoned communicator, and former cabinet minister who has proven more than capable of developing senior grade positions entirely based on my own read of a situation … to suggest that I'm not is ridiculous," Rempel Garner said in her statement.

Poilievre is the only leader who has refused to obtain a security clearance in order to view the unredacted version of the NSICOP report. He has argued that it would prevent him from criticizing the Liberal government's approach to addressing foreign interference.

Conservative Party spokesperson Sebastian Skamski repeated that argument in an email on Monday, saying that the government can use "'threat reduction measures under section 12.1 of the CSIS Act to make further information available" without limiting Poilievre's ability to speak. 

"Unlike others who are willing to limit their ability to hold the government to account on important issues of national security, Mr. Poilievre will not be gagged and left unable to speak or act on the information he may receive," Skamski said.

When asked about the allegations in Radio-Canada's report, Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said Poilievre should get his security clearance.

"I have a lot of confidence in the work that CSIS does in terms of detecting and disrupting the foreign interference. I see those briefings very regularly and I wish the leader of the opposition was interested enough to be able to see them himself," LeBlanc told reporters.