Liberal MPs drop probe of alleged leak to press

Add another manila folder to the stack of unsolved political mysteries: Over the objections of the opposition, the procedure and House affairs committee has officially wrapped up its investigation into the alleged leak of the proposed new laws on physician-assisted dying.

The question was referred to committee last spring after House Speaker Geoff Regan agreed with then-Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer that there were grounds to find a prima facie breach of privilege, with the committee charged to determine whether such a breach had taken place.

Since then, the committee has heard from several parliamentary law experts, including acting Commons clerk Marc Bosc and Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, who assured MPs that she was confident that no one in her office was responsible for the alleged leak.

The investigation was put on hold during the summer recess, and when MPs returned, it became clear that the Liberals were ready to move on, and would use their majority at the table to do so.

Liberal MP Arnold Chan, who has acted as de facto government representative throughout the probe, said he and his colleagues haven’t been persuaded that a draft copy of the bill itself found its way into the hands of a Globe and Mail reporter before it was tabled in the House.

As he pointed out Thursday, simply dropping hints to reporters on what may or may not be in a legislative package is not, in itself, a breach of privilege, even if the source is, as the Globe described, someone “with knowledge” of the bill.

Not surprisingly, the Conservatives and lone New Democrat committee member David Christopherson seem to feel there are a few unanswered questions.

Conservative MP Blake Richards, who, alongside his colleague Jamie Schmale, warned the Liberal contingent that “dark clouds” would continue to hang over the government as long as the source of the leak remains unnamed.

But the Liberals voted down motions to explore the issue further.

The only remaining recourse was the traditional outraged press release, which proclaimed Richards to be “disappointed” that the governing Liberals had “shut down efforts to investigate leak.”