Vincent Rigby on the Need for a Canadian Foreign Spy Service | The Walrus
August 12, 2025 | Vincent Rigby was quoted by The Walrus as one of several former Canadian intelligence leaders who have shifted from skepticism to support for creating a Canadian foreign spy agency. The article traces decades of Ottawa鈥檚 reluctance to build such a service, relying instead on allies like the U.S. and the U.K. for intelligence gathered abroad. Rigby admitted he had 鈥渧acillated鈥� throughout his career鈥攕eeing a foreign intelligence service as a 鈥渘ice to have鈥� rather than a necessity鈥攂ut the worsening global security climate and a loss of trust in the United States as a reliable partner have changed his mind. In the context of the article鈥檚 argument that Canada faces mounting threats and intelligence gaps, Rigby now views human intelligence gathering abroad as 鈥渕ission critical,鈥� even while recognizing the political, financial, and logistical challenges of establishing such a service and the uncertainty of winning public support.
