PMO Accused of Leaning on Justice Ministry To Make International Legal Woes Vanish
Prime Minister Denies Allegations His Office Pressured Attorney General
Reports are suggesting Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Office pressured the Justice Minister to help out a Quebec company’s legal woes, then shuffled cabinet when she wouldn’t.
SNC-Lavalin, an engineering and construction giant, is in some legal hot water over allegations it bribed its way into government business in Libya, something against Canadian law.
According to a Globe and Mail report, the company lobbied the PMO for a deal that would see jail time avoided , which then leaned on the Justice Ministry.
As Attorney General, Jody Wilson-Raybould had the ability to get involved in this matter, and negotiate a “remediation agreement” that would undo the damage done, while not admitting any guilt on behalf of SNC.
No deal was ever reached, and Wilson-Raybould was moved to the veterans affairs portfolio in January.
Prime Minister Trudeau said Thursday morning that his government respects the rule of law, and called the allegations made untrue. “The allegations reported in the story are false,” Trudeau said at a Toronto media conference this morning. “At no point did we direct the attorney general, current or previous, to take any decision whatsoever in this matter.”
