Appearing before the House of Commons public safety and national security committee today, Lauren Chen refused to answer questions based on advice from her lawyers.
Chen is at the heart of an investigation by U.S. authorities which alleges her company, Tenet Media, essentially acted on behalf of the Kremlin by disseminating pro-Russia content.
The Tenet Media co-founder was summoned to appear before the House of Commons public safety and national security committee to field questions about some of the explosive allegations.
Conservative MP Raquel Dancho wasn't pleased with Chen's lack of responses to questions, saying that "Miss Chen unfortunately, is making a farce of this committee and it's deeply, deeply disappointing."
Conservative MP Glen Motz also voiced his displeasure with Chen's failure to provide answers to crucial questions regarding foreign influence. He asked the Tenet Media co-founder, "What factors influenced you to collude with the Russians? What was your end goal?"
The NDP then moved a motion to hold Chen in contempt of Parliament for her behaviour, which passed unanimously.
The Liberals moved to pass a motion to compel Lauren Southern and Liam Donovan to testify at the Public Safety Committee, two Canadians who were previously involved with Chen's alleged Russian propaganda scheme, Tenet Media.
Chen stated that because she is under criminal investigation in the U.S., she would not be answering any questions during today's committee meeting.