QUESTION PERIOD — Public Safety
Economic Sanctions
February 15, 2023
My question is for the government leader, and it has to do with a news story yesterday from the Trudeau government’s preferred broadcasting news outlet, the CBC, where they identified three Canadians of Iranian descent operating right here in this country who are wanted by the FBI for money laundering on behalf of the IRGC and the regime — millions and millions of dollars. They are masquerading around in Toronto as real estate brokers, mortgage brokers and investors.
We have seen the Trudeau government refuse to move on the foreign influence registry and accountability act by keeping it on ice right in this chamber. We have seen the Trudeau government refuse to use Magnitsky sanctions against many agents who are connected to oligarchs and dictatorships, and we see the Trudeau government refusing to list the IRGC.
Are you going to take action once and for all and not allow the agents of these regimes come into our country and use Canada as an ATM machine?
This government has imposed serious sanctions under the Sergei Magnitsky Law. This is the government that passed the act, and it continues to take measures against all foreign nationals who are undermining our national security.
I’m not familiar with the details that you mentioned with regard to these three nationals. If they indeed are committing fraud or are wanted elsewhere, these are matters that the government will deal with in the appropriate way.
Government leader, this story was broadcast on the CBC. Your government should be aware. This is not the first time I have raised these questions on this chamber floor. We now know it’s been a number of months that the Chinese Beijing regime is operating police stations illegally on our territory. We now have concrete examples of individuals connected to the ayatollah and to the terrorist regime in Iran who are using Canada as a headquarters for them to do business.
Before Christmas, I asked you a question about a Russian oligarch connected to President Putin who is mining and doing business and extracting resources in Quebec — all of this without the Trudeau government taking any steps. And excuse me, but there have not been Magnitsky sanctions in any one of these instances that I have asked about. Now, government leader, is this Prime Minister Trudeau’s way of attracting more foreign investment into our country?
Thank you for the question. Regarding the imposition of sanctions, as I have said on many occasions, honourable colleague, the decisions to list additional entities under the Criminal Code are all decisions that are taken by the government upon due deliberation, reflection and input from national security or law enforcement, as the case may be.
I will not comment on what investigations are being done with regard to any of these matters as it would be inappropriate in this chamber. I understand the importance of the issues as does the government. I understand your interest in continuing to raise them as it is your privilege. The government is doing everything that it can do to protect Canadians, but not everything that the government does in the area of national security or law enforcement is something that will be disclosed publicly in Senate Question Period.
