Attorney General Arif Virani has turned down the idea of creating an independent registry for foreign agents despite numerous requests from MPs representing all political parties.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, Virani did not disclose who opposed the public disclosure of lobbyists who China and other foreign states fund.“We are consulting,” Virani said in a statement. Cabinet will take “weeks and months” to find “the best approach to enhance existing measures and bolster our defences against these evolving threats,” said Virani. No deadline was set.The Attorney General stated that establishing a standalone registry was not under consideration despite the United States having enforced its Foreign Agents Registration Act since 1938.In 2018, Australia passed the Foreign Influence Transparency Scheme Act to monitor and oversee foreign agents operating within the country.“A registry is not a universal solution and should be accompanied by other initiatives,” said Virani’s statement. Much more study is needed to “ensure a wide range of views and expertise is captured,” said Virani.In an October 24 report, the Commons Ethics committee recommended the introduction of a cabinet bill to reveal the identities of foreign agents.“The creation of a foreign influence registry has been proposed many times in recent years, but no bill has been passed,” said the committee report Foreign Interference and the Threats to the Integrity of Democratic Institutions. “Several allied countries have established foreign influence registries.”Bloc Québécois MP René Villemure (Trois-Rivières, QC), vice-chair of the Ethics committee, told reporters at the time that all MPs from all parties agreed a registry must be adopted. “We want to make sure this happens,” said Villemure.Liberal-appointed Senators, who hold a Senate majority, oppose the registry. The Conservative Bill S-237, introduced on February 24, 2022, mandated the disclosure of “foreign government, individual or entity” with the threat of $200,000 fines or two years in jail. However, it has not yet reached its Second Reading.“Why don’t we do our job?” Senator Leo Housakos (QC), sponsor of the bill, earlier told the Senate. “Get the ball rolling instead of wasting another year in consultations and maybe have another election before we get anything done.”Liberal-appointed Senator Yuen Pau Woo (BC) opposed a registry, citing it as a “serious harassment and stigmatization risk” for Chinese-Canadians.Petition E-4395 received only 2,450 signatures nationwide, which is considered a relatively low number compared to the House's typical standards.In a May 16 commentary in the periodical Policy Options, Woo claimed demands for a registry represented a “frenzy of innuendo against Chinese-Canadian politicians.” He did not elaborate.Two MPs with Chinese ancestry, Conservative Michael Chong (Wellington-Halton Hills, ON) and New Democrat Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, BC) have both supported the idea of a registry.
