Liberal MP's travel documents show claims he voted on bills while in China are false

After Liberal MP Shaun Chen announced on Monday his plans to resign his seat in the House of Commons, he was accused online of breaking House rules by voting on legislation while he was in China earlier this year.

The claims, which were amplified by right-wing influencers and a handful of current and former Conservative MPs, are based on the date stamps on videos shared to the popular Chinese social media platform WeChat showing Chen visiting China.

"Shaun Chen enjoys some ice cream in a video posted on March 25th in China. Voting records show Shaun Chen voted electronically six times in the House of Commons on March 25th," reads one of a series of posts from independent journalist Andy Lee this week.

"If Shaun Chen voted remotely while in China, this is potentially a serious breach of national security. Accessing CCP controlled networks to sign in to secure parliamentary systems does not seem very smart," reads a post from another account.

Conservative MP John Barlow reposted a thread about Chen's travel, saying, "This goes much deeper than a trip to China. There are serious questions that need answers."

In a now-deleted reply to that post on X, Barlow then cited the House of Commons standing orders, which prohibit members of Parliament from voting while outside of Canada.

Many of the posts claimed Chen voted on the government's controversial hate crime legislation, Bill C-9, on March 25 while he was in China.

Lee said in a later post that it's possible the WeChat videos were edited and posted after the trip, but added it was "more than fair to question if he voted in China."

Members of Parliament are forbidden from participating in House votes while they are outside of the country.

The House of Commons standing orders, the rules that govern House procedures, state that electronic votes can only be cast within Canada.

Standing order 45 (12) (a) also states that a member's identity will be visually confirmed. MPs must log into an app to record their vote. The app uses facial recognition technology to confirm they are who they say they are.

A spokesperson for the office of House Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia said there are technical controls and human validation processes in place to ensure MPs are inside the country when they vote.

"These measures are implemented in accordance with House of Commons security and technology policies and are intended to detect and address circumstances that may indicate voting activity originating from outside Canada," the Speaker's office said.

Chen's office said the MP was in China between March 14 and March 22, and returned to Canada for the House of Commons sitting on March 23 following its spring recess.