An anonymous clerical error is being cited after records showed Prime Minister Mark Carney misled reporters about his meetings with Chinese Communist Party leaders, Conservative MPs told the Commons on Monday. The MP who flagged the discrepancy said Carney keeps “trying to change his story.”“The Prime Minister has been caught misleading Canadians,” said Conservative MP Ned Kuruc (Hamilton East-Stoney Creek, Ont.). “After his trip to Beijing he claimed human rights violations and foreign interference were discussed in meetings with Chinese Communist Party leaders. However, government documents I requested revealed that neither topic was discussed in any of the bilateral meetings.”“Today the Prime Minister is trying to change his story yet again. Canadians want to know why he cannot stick to his story.”Blacklock's Reporter said Carney declined to comment. Foreign Minister Anita Anand told the Commons the discrepancy was a clerical error.“The parliamentary return in question was submitted in error,” Anand said amid jeering from Opposition benches. “It will be corrected at the earliest opportunity. The Prime Minister has been clear.”.Carney met with Chinese President Xi Jinping for roughly two hours on January 16. That day in Beijing, he told reporters he raised concerns about human rights violations. When pressed for specifics, Carney said the issues were discussed “in our broader discussions over the past few days.”Kuruc later tabled an Order Paper Question asking which meetings covered human rights and foreign interference. Cabinet responded that these topics “were not brought up proactively by the Canadian Prime Minister.”Anand did not clarify where, when, or with whom Carney questioned China’s human rights record. The Commons had previously passed motions in 2021 and 2023 censuring Beijing for crimes against humanity.
