The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) will not be allowed to make submissions at the inquiry into the declaration of the Emergencies Act, as decided by Commissioner of the Public Order Emergency Commission, Paul Rouleau.."The CPC's application identifies a range of important factual and public policy issues. It is not clear to me how its interest differs from that of the public generally, and I am not satisfied that the CPC has direct or substantial interest in those matters," Rouleau wrote..On June 28, Rouleau released his decisions for application of standing to participate in the Public Order Emergency Commission. The commission will look into the federal government's decision to invoke the Emergencies Act for the first time in Canadian history in response to the Freedom Convoy protests of February 2022..In the document, Rouleau said the CPC sought full standing, "other than to produce factual documents, with respect to all aspects of the Commission’s mandate.".The CPC pointed to its role as the Official Opposition as reason for having direct interest in the inquiry. But Rouleau said he does not believe they have a role to play..Rouleau concurred with the views of Commissioner John Gomery who once headed the public inquiry into the federal sponsorship scandal..When considering applications from political parties who sought party standing in the inquiry, Gomery said it wasn't clear that a political party opposed to the one in power had, "a direct and substantial interest of its own in these questions, other than its partisan interests."."These play an essential role within the political system but should not perform part of the Commission's proceedings," Gomery said..The Conservative party also submitted that its reputational interests were engaged by the inquiry. Liberal and NDP MPs have repeatedly criticized Conservative MPs for supporting the Freedom Convoy..But Rouleau said, in his view, those comments "do not give rise to the type of risk of reputational harm that would justify standing in a public inquiry," as they happened during partisan debates in the House of Commons..The commissioner has granted standing to of all three levels of government, police and representatives, and Freedom Convoy organizers Tamara Lich, Chris Barber, Daniel Bulford, Tom Marazzo, and Sean Tiessen. .The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, the convoy's legal counsel, will also be allowed to stand alongside two other groups.
