On Parliament Hill

DISCLAIMER: Events surrounding this story have been shifting throughout the day. These are the facts as we understand them as of the time of writing this piece.

Last week, sources told the Globe & Mail that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) urged former Attorney General, Jody Wilson-Raybould, to intervene in a corruption and fraud case against Montreal engineering firm SNC-Lavalin. The criminal case is related to allegations that the company paid millions of dollars in bribes to get government contracts in Libya.

SNC-Lavalin has been a major financial donor to the Liberal Party and has also been charged with making illegal campaign donations to the Liberals, with one official pleading guilty earlier this year.

The company has been lobbying senior members in the PMO to secure a “remediation agreement” – a deal that would let them avoid prosecution. Since 2017, SNC-Lavalin representatives met with PMO officials 14 times, including 12 meetings with Gerald Butts, principal secretary and chief advisor to Prime Minister Trudeau.

Last year, the Trudeau Liberals amended the Criminal Code to let prosecutors suspend criminal charges against Canadian companies found to have committed wrongdoing – a change that appears to have been custom designed and custom timed to enable the Liberal government to pull SNC-Lavalin out of its legal troubles. SNC Lavalin immediately applied for the new exemption – an exemption many Liberals were unaware had been secretly included in last year’s budget bill – but were refused.

Sources told the Globe and Mail that Wilson-Raybould came under heavy pressure from PMO officials to persuade the Public Prosecution Service of Canada to negotiate an agreement that would have allowed the company to avail themselves of this exemption. Reports indicated that Wilson-Raybould was unwilling to do so. She was shuffled out of her role as Attorney General last month, at the time releasing an unusual statement stressing the need for independence in the Justice portfolio.

On Tuesday, Wilson-Raybould resigned from Cabinet and retained legal counsel, furthering speculation that the Prime Minister’s Office had pressured her to act inappropriately.

Only the day before, Prime Minister Trudeau expressed that he had “full confidence” in Wilson-Raybould, but like many Canadians it appears she has lost confidence in him.

Tuesday she released the following statement: “I am aware that many Canadians wish for me to speak on matters that have been in the media over the last week. I am in the process of obtaining advice on the topics that I am legally permitted to discuss in this matter and as such, have retained the Honourable Thomas Albert Cromwell, CC as council.”

It is deeply disturbing that Justin Trudeau appears to have fired his Attorney General for refusing to bow to his demands and illegally intervene to benefit a major donor.

Justin Trudeau has proven again and again that he believes he is above the law. He misled Canadians about his illegal vacation. He shrugged off allegations that he had sexually assaulted a woman. He is the only sitting Prime Minister to be investigated by the Ethic’s Commissioner (now multiple times).

Justin Trudeau must immediately come clean with Canadians. The Prime Minister’s carefully crafted, and legally vetted answers fall far short of the answers Canadians deserve.

In co-operation with the NDP, Canada’s Conservatives have called for an emergency meeting of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights to question PMO and other government officials over their potential interference in an ongoing criminal prosecution. If the Prime Minister has nothing to hide, then members of his government should have no reason to oppose these officials from testifying. Failure to do so says only one thing: that Justin Trudeau has something to hide.

Conservative Leader, Andrew Scheer has spoken and sent a letter, calling on the Prime Minister to waive his attorney-client privilege – as Prime Ministers Harper and Martin did. He has also sent a second letter in the wake of Ms. Wilson-Raybould’s resignation, demanding that the Prime Minister’s Office not destroy any records and documents related to the matter.

As parliamentarians, we have a responsibility to determine what happened here. Justin Trudeau and his officials owe Canadians nothing short of full disclosure. If the Liberals choose to prevent PMO officials from testifying, Conservatives will pursue every course of action to make sure Justin Trudeau and his office are held to account.

Mr. Trudeau’s consistent ethical lapses and his disastrous handling of this latest scandal have thrown his government into chaos. He promised Canadians open and transparent government and he has betrayed that promise.

Canadians deserve better.