Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough's department terminated a total of 64 employees due to security risks, according to government records. .According to Blacklock’s Reporter, one was confirmed to be a foreign spy..“For sensitivity reasons, we cannot provide additional information on specific cases,” staff wrote in a briefing note for Minister Qualtrough. The 64 firings occurred in the period from 2016 to Feb. 9, 2023..In 2021, an election year, the highest number of individuals to be terminated in a single year was 37. In 2020, 13 individuals were terminated..“Sixty-four department employees had their security clearance revoked following a review for cause,” said the briefing note Revocation of Government Security Clearance. .“Notably, one individual had their security clearance revoked in 2019 based on the conclusions of an investigation conducted by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service that determined they acted on behalf of a foreign government.”.The briefing note did not disclose the identity of the foreign government involved nor specify whether or not the police were notified of the situation..“These employees lost their employer’s trust and were terminated,” said the note. .“The Security Intelligence Service does not disclose details related to its personnel or operations.”.“The question to be answered is whether the individual can be trusted to safeguard information, assets and facilities and be relied upon not to abuse the trust that might be accorded and to perform the assigned duties in a manner that will reflect positively on and not pose a security risk to the Government of Canada,” said the note. .In the 64 cases, employees had “security-related vulnerabilities that put into question the employees’ reliability and trustworthiness,” it said. .“As a result, the employees lost their employer’s trust and were terminated.”.The briefing note is dated March 31, the same day Blacklock’s reported an Inquiry of Ministry tabled in the Commons indicating three foreign spies were uncovered on the federal payroll at the departments of Employment and Fisheries and Canada Border Services Agency. .The Inquiry was tabled at the request of Conservative MP John Barlow (Foothills, AB), who asked “How many individuals have had their security clearances revoked for cause since 2016?”.In 2021, former National Security Advisor Richard Fadden spoke at a Commons Special Committee on Canada-China Relations meeting and explained that it is quite common for foreign agents to infiltrate government departments..“They are after us,” said Fadden..“The great difficulty we have in Canada is the general public has trouble understanding that we are threatened. We feel very comfortable here in North America.”.“We have three oceans, we have a border with the United States,” said Fadden. .“Sometimes you have to face a crisis before you truly understand there is a problem.”
