PM BATTLES BACK AFTER SUDDEN RESIGNATION
Says ‘no one’ raised concerns in Lavalin case
OTTAWA • Prime Minister Justin Trudeau went on the offensive Tuesday evening after former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould’s sudden resignation from cabinet.
In his strongest statement to date, Trudeau repeatedly said he was “surprised and disappointed” by Wilson-Raybould’s decision, which came amid allegations she was pressured by the Prime Minister’s Office to help construction giant SNC-Lavalin avoid criminal prosecution. Trudeau claimed her resignation was “not consistent” with conversations they had recently.
“In regards to the matter of SNC-Lavalin, let me be direct,” he told reporters in Winnipeg. “The government of Canada did its job and to the clear public standards expected of it. If anyone felt differently, they had an obligation to raise that with me. No one, including Jody, did that.” It was a marked change in tone for Trudeau, who just one day earlier had painted a rosy picture of his relationship with Wilson-Raybould, suggesting her presence at the cabinet table was proof all was well. She resigned from cabinet hours later. Following the resignation of Canada’s first Indigenous justice minister, several Indigenous groups, including the Assembly of First Nations, raised concerns about Wilson-Raybould’s departure from the cabinet of a government that has touted its commitment to reconciliation.
“When I sought federal elected office, it was with the goal of implementing a positive and progressive vision of change on behalf of all Canadians and a different way of doing politics,” she wrote in her resignation letter, dated Feb. 12 and published Tuesday morning on her website. “My resignation as a minister of the Crown in no way changes my commitment to seeing that fundamental change achieved.”
“This work must and will carry on,” Wilson-Raybould added. “Regardless of background, geography or party affiliation, we must stand together for the values that Canada is built on.”
The letter did not explain why she was stepping down. Wilson-Raybould, who represents a Vancouver riding, accepted the position of veterans affairs minister last month after being shuffled out of the justice portfolio, a move widely seen as a demotion.
Her departure from cabinet follows a Globe and Mail report last Thursday citing unnamed sources who said the PMO pushed Wilson-Raybould to direct federal prosecutors to negotiate a deal with SNC-Lavalin, known as a deferred prosecution agreement, that would have led to a fine instead of a criminal trial, but she refused.
The Quebec company was charged in 2015 with bribing Libyan officials between 2001 and 2011 in exchange for construction contracts. The Post has not independently confirmed the allegations of political interference. Trudeau said he accepted Wilson-Raybould’s resignation Monday night. Earlier on Monday, Trudeau had told reporters in Vancouver that he had “full confidence in Jody” and had met with her twice since landing in the city on Sunday. “In our system of government, of course, her presence in cabinet should actually speak for itself,” he said. He also claimed she’d reminded him of a meeting they’d had last fall, in which he’d apparently assured her that decisions involving federal prosecutions were hers alone. Trudeau has said the allegations in the Globe and Mail story are false. Wilson-Raybould has said little about the issue, citing solicitor-client privilege. In her resignation letter, she said she was consulting former Supreme Court justice Thomas Albert Cromwell to obtain “advice on the topics that I am legally permitted to discuss in this matter.” In Fredericton, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer renewed his call on Tuesday for the prime minister to waive his privilege and allow Wilson-Raybould to speak freely.
“Justin Trudeau’s ethical lapses and his handling of this latest scandal have thrown his government into chaos,” Scheer said. “The longer he refuses to do this, the more guilty he appears to Canadians.
“Justin Trudeau is trying to hide the truth,” he said, adding, “Yesterday, he said that her presence (in cabinet) speaks for itself. Well, today, her resignation speaks for itself.”
Scheer also demanded that the government retain all documents “relating to the ongoing SNC-Lavalin affair.”
Trudeau said he has asked current Attorney General David Lametti to advise him on solicitor-client privilege, but told reporters “there’s a real danger that has been flagged for me of unintended consequences” if he were to waive his privilege, because of SNC-Lavalin’s ongoing court cases.
On Tuesday, several Indigenous leaders voiced their support for Wilson-Raybould and raised concerns about her resignation, including Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde.
“Ms. Wilson-Raybould’s appointment as minister of justice and attorney general was celebrated by many First Nations people as a tremendous accomplishment and testament to her expertise, experience and intellect,” Bellegarde said in a statement. “I am concerned about the many unanswered questions about Jody Wilson-Raybould’s departure and this is echoed by many First Nations across the country.” Trudeau said his government will continue to take direction from Indigenous Canadians. “Our government’s commitment to reconciliation is larger than any one person, and we will continue to work closely with Indigenous partners as we walk this path together,” he said. Before Wilson-Raybould’s resignation was made public, the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs published an open letter to Trudeau criticizing recent media reports that paint the former attorney general as being difficult to get along with, self-centred and untrustworthy, based on accounts from unnamed Liberal insiders.
These statements “perpetuate colonial-era, sexist stereotypes that Indigenous women cannot be powerful, forthright, and steadfast in positions of power, but rather confrontational, meddling and egotistic,” the organization said in a statement. If Trudeau does not apologize to Wilson-Raybould, the letter says, “the hypocrisy of (his) professed feminism and ‘most important relationship’ with Indigenous people will be laid bare for all Canadians to see.” On Monday, ethics commissioner Mario Dion confirmed he had launched an investigation of the matter, based on a possible violation of the Conflict of Interest Act. Wayne Long, a New Brunswick Liberal MP who broke ranks this week and supported the Conservative and NDP calls for an investigation, doubled down Tuesday in a video message from Florida, where he’s on vacation. “I’m going to be your representative in Ottawa, not Ottawa’s representative in the riding,” he told his constituents. “I’m going to stand up, I’m going to say what I think, and I’m always going to do what’s right.”
The Liberals introduced deferred prosecution agreements in the last budget bill, but in October, the director of the public prosecution service told SNC-Lavalin it would be inappropriate to negotiate such an agreement in this case.