Budget earmarks millions to combat foreign interference

The RCMP will be getting tens of million of dollars over the next three years to ramp up investigations related to the harassment and intimidation of immigrant diaspora communities in Canada.

The $49 million allocation is buried in Tuesday’s federal budget. The document says the money is intended to help the Mounties “protect Canadians from harassment and intimidation” and specifically calls out authoritarian regimes such Russia, China and Iran — all of which have been accused of targeting diaspora communities in Canada.

The new initiative is also intended to safeguard universities and cutting-edge research from espionage.

The budget warns that “foreign actors [are]