Federal elections officials never prosecuted any Chinese agents despite significant allegations of foreign interference, but spent four years of resources prosecuting Rebel News for improper signage, says Blacklock's Reporter.The Elections Commissioner fined Rebel $3,000 for failing to register as a campaign advertiser after the media organization distributed lawn signs promoting a book critical of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Librano$: What The Media Won’t Tell You About Justin Trudeau’s Corruption during the 2019 elections campaign. Elections Commissioner Caroline Simard confirmed during the Commission on Foreign Interference hundreds of complaints alleging foreign interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal election campaigns and “allocated far greater resources” to what were deemed “domestic actors” — Rebel News and their lawn signs the Trudeau Government did not like. Conservative Party Counsel Nando de Luca asked if it would “be fair to say while, for investigations of breaches of the Elections Act by domestic actors, the Office has allocated far greater resources and spent far more time in its enforcement activities than it has in respect of alleged breaches of the Act by foreign operators?”“It is difficult to answer such questions,” replied Simard. Mylène Gigou, senior director of enforcement in the Office of the Elections Commissioner, also told the committee it was complicated.“The Canada Elections Act is extremely, extremely complex,” testified Gigou. “We work in a small team where we work very closely with legal counsel.”De Luca questioned why the Elections Commissioner spent time and money prosecuting Rebel News when complaints of Chinese interference went uninvestigated. “We are talking about a period of well over four years that the Office of the Commissioner of Elections devoted expenses and resources to this one particular instance of contravention of the Elections Act,” said de Luca.Yves Côté, the now-retired Elections Commissioner who approved the Rebel News prosecution, denied knowing anything about the matter. “I have no specific recollection,” testified Côté.“The link with foreign interference is not apparent to me for the time being. What you are saying about this case, I don’t see foreign interference at all in the picture. That said, yes, there was an administrative monetary penalty against Rebel News.”Though the Elections Act permits book promotions, the Commissioner ruled the lawn signs were no ordinary elections campaign. “It is clear the so-called book exemption applies only in relation to a book that would have been published whether or not the election was called,” the Commissioner wrote at the time.The Federal Court in 2023 upheld the ruling. “The lawn signs were election advertising,” wrote Justice Cecily Strickland.
Federal elections officials never prosecuted any Chinese agents despite significant allegations of foreign interference, but spent four years of resources prosecuting Rebel News for improper signage, says Blacklock's Reporter.The Elections Commissioner fined Rebel $3,000 for failing to register as a campaign advertiser after the media organization distributed lawn signs promoting a book critical of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Librano$: What The Media Won’t Tell You About Justin Trudeau’s Corruption during the 2019 elections campaign. Elections Commissioner Caroline Simard confirmed during the Commission on Foreign Interference hundreds of complaints alleging foreign interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal election campaigns and “allocated far greater resources” to what were deemed “domestic actors” — Rebel News and their lawn signs the Trudeau Government did not like. Conservative Party Counsel Nando de Luca asked if it would “be fair to say while, for investigations of breaches of the Elections Act by domestic actors, the Office has allocated far greater resources and spent far more time in its enforcement activities than it has in respect of alleged breaches of the Act by foreign operators?”“It is difficult to answer such questions,” replied Simard. Mylène Gigou, senior director of enforcement in the Office of the Elections Commissioner, also told the committee it was complicated.“The Canada Elections Act is extremely, extremely complex,” testified Gigou. “We work in a small team where we work very closely with legal counsel.”De Luca questioned why the Elections Commissioner spent time and money prosecuting Rebel News when complaints of Chinese interference went uninvestigated. “We are talking about a period of well over four years that the Office of the Commissioner of Elections devoted expenses and resources to this one particular instance of contravention of the Elections Act,” said de Luca.Yves Côté, the now-retired Elections Commissioner who approved the Rebel News prosecution, denied knowing anything about the matter. “I have no specific recollection,” testified Côté.“The link with foreign interference is not apparent to me for the time being. What you are saying about this case, I don’t see foreign interference at all in the picture. That said, yes, there was an administrative monetary penalty against Rebel News.”Though the Elections Act permits book promotions, the Commissioner ruled the lawn signs were no ordinary elections campaign. “It is clear the so-called book exemption applies only in relation to a book that would have been published whether or not the election was called,” the Commissioner wrote at the time.The Federal Court in 2023 upheld the ruling. “The lawn signs were election advertising,” wrote Justice Cecily Strickland.
