My question today is again for the Liberal government leader in the Senate.

Leader, you seem to take so much exception to the questions of the official opposition, as if we don’t have the right to do our job. You question our integrity. You question our professionalism when we ask you questions. I ask these questions on behalf of the people of Winnipeg, on behalf of the people of my province of Manitoba and, indeed, on behalf of all Canadians as the leader of our Conservative caucus. I, leader, am doing my job. I do it to the best of my ability, and you question our right to ask you questions.

Leader, in doing your job, you often speak to us about the importance of deferring to the will of the other place. They, after all, have voted and sent something over.

Yesterday, leader, a clear majority of the members of the House of Commons voted to remove the Prime Minister’s made‑up Special Rapporteur. Only Liberal MPs voted to keep him. Yet, moments after the vote was taken, the Special Rapporteur issued a statement defying the result. He said he’s not going anywhere.

Leader, isn’t it a bit hypocritical to tell senators to accept the will of the House when your government refuses to do so?

The answer is no. It is the position of the government that the Special Rapporteur’s report provided valuable information to Canadians and that the public process that he has envisaged overseeing, including the work of a number of institutions such as NSIRA and NSICOP, is the most appropriate way to address the issue of foreign interference.

In a democratic society, the government doesn’t have to adhere to democracy.

The made-up Special Rapporteur’s statement defying the will of the House was clearly written before the votes were cast, just as his report was sent to translation before he even met with Erin O’Toole on who CSIS says was a target of Beijing’s interference. His statement yesterday said, “. . . my mandate comes from the government.” Exactly — that is what I’ve been saying all along, leader. That’s what we’ve been saying. He is not independent. He is an old Trudeau family friend and a member of the Trudeau Foundation. He was hired to help out the Prime Minister and his government in a made-up job. The Privy Council Office handles his media requests. He is not independent.

Leader, the very first words of the cover-up issued by the Special Rapporteur last week were this: “Our democracy is built on trust.” If the rapporteur and the Prime Minister can so easily dismiss the result of a democratic vote by elected members of the House of Commons, why should Canadians trust the Trudeau government about Beijing’s interference or, indeed, about anything else?

Thank you for your question. As I have stated on many occasions, and I will repeat it again, it is the position of the government that the Special Rapporteur’s mandate has been discharged in an exemplary fashion with the publication of the report. The ongoing work that will follow the report is and will be to the benefit of Canadians and our security against foreign interference.