As a longtime former public servant, Michael Wernick is listening when the Parti Québécois promises a third referendum on independence should it secure power in the next election.
He thinks Russia is, too.
“It presents an opportunity to disrupt and maybe even break up an important G7 country, so I’m sure they’re going to have a try,” said the former clerk of the Privy Council.
“It’s 32 years since the last one. It would now be fought on social media. It would be subject to cyber attacks. It would be subject to disinformation campaigns. It would look a lot more like the Brexit referendum of 2016 in Britain — only worse.”
While the threat of foreign interference in Canadian federal politics has garnered international headlines and triggered an ongoing public inquiry, it’s not the only target.