A House of Commons committee will call witnesses to testify regarding the RCMP’s investigation into the SNC-Lavalin affair.The motion to call witnesses was made by Bloc MP René Villemure (Trois-Rivières) at a meeting of the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.The list of slated witnesses includes RCMP Commissioner Michel Duhaime, RCMP Sgt. Fred Pincince, former Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion, Interim Ethics Commissioner Konrad von Finckenstein and former Privy Council Clerk Michael Wernick.The hearings will take place over two meetings of the committee in a few weeks, following completion of the committee's study of social media and privacy.Interest in the case was renewed after Democracy Watch received partial responses to their information requests regarding the investigation.In a statement released to Western Standard, DWatch co-founder Duff Conacher welcomed the committee’s actions but said they didn’t go far enough.“The committee's hearings are a start but they will likely show that a full public inquiry, headed by an inquiry commissioner chosen by all party leaders, is needed to determine exactly why the RCMP didn't do a full investigation, didn't apply to court for an order to obtain secret Cabinet documents, tried to bury its investigation with a two-year delay and believed everything the prime minister and his cabinet officials said without verifying whether any of their claims were true," said Conacher.In 2015, the RCMP laid corruption and fraud charges against SNC-Lavalin over allegations it used bribery to secure government contracts in Libya. The company lobbied cabinet ministers, MPs, senators, senior bureaucrats and premiers to have a remediation agreement instead. A conviction would have kept the company from bidding on future government contracts for ten years.In the end, SNC-Lavalin’s construction division pleaded guilty to fraud of more than $5,000, for which they received a $280-million penalty and a three-year probation order.Wernick testified on SNC Lavalin to the Justice Committee in 2019. He said then-Attorney General and Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould never received inappropriate pressure.“The prime minister said at every occasion verbally and in writing that she was the decider, so she was not giving legal advice to the prime minister. She was the decider — the full and final decider,” Wernick said.Wernick also insisted cabinet never discussed the issue."There was never, never, never a cabinet conversation about the prosecution,” he said.Wernick said he told Wilson-Raybould “a lot of her colleagues” were anxious about the possibility SNC Lavalin could close down or move should criminal proceedings go ahead. The company employed more than 9,000 people at the time."Part of my conversations ... was conveying context — that there were a lot of people worried about what would happen, the consequences, not for her, the consequences for the workers and the communities and the suppliers," he said.Wernick said the only pressure Wilson-Raybould would have felt was to do what was best."There's pressure to get it right on every decision. To approve, to not approve, to act, to not act. I am quite sure the minister felt pressure to get it right," Wernick said."There was no inappropriate pressure put on the minister — at any time."Mario Dion, whom Trudeau appointed federal ethics commissioner, ruled Wernick did not break any conflict of interest laws. However, Dion did rule that Trudeau broke ethics rules by improperly interfering in the case.
A House of Commons committee will call witnesses to testify regarding the RCMP’s investigation into the SNC-Lavalin affair.The motion to call witnesses was made by Bloc MP René Villemure (Trois-Rivières) at a meeting of the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.The list of slated witnesses includes RCMP Commissioner Michel Duhaime, RCMP Sgt. Fred Pincince, former Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion, Interim Ethics Commissioner Konrad von Finckenstein and former Privy Council Clerk Michael Wernick.The hearings will take place over two meetings of the committee in a few weeks, following completion of the committee's study of social media and privacy.Interest in the case was renewed after Democracy Watch received partial responses to their information requests regarding the investigation.In a statement released to Western Standard, DWatch co-founder Duff Conacher welcomed the committee’s actions but said they didn’t go far enough.“The committee's hearings are a start but they will likely show that a full public inquiry, headed by an inquiry commissioner chosen by all party leaders, is needed to determine exactly why the RCMP didn't do a full investigation, didn't apply to court for an order to obtain secret Cabinet documents, tried to bury its investigation with a two-year delay and believed everything the prime minister and his cabinet officials said without verifying whether any of their claims were true," said Conacher.In 2015, the RCMP laid corruption and fraud charges against SNC-Lavalin over allegations it used bribery to secure government contracts in Libya. The company lobbied cabinet ministers, MPs, senators, senior bureaucrats and premiers to have a remediation agreement instead. A conviction would have kept the company from bidding on future government contracts for ten years.In the end, SNC-Lavalin’s construction division pleaded guilty to fraud of more than $5,000, for which they received a $280-million penalty and a three-year probation order.Wernick testified on SNC Lavalin to the Justice Committee in 2019. He said then-Attorney General and Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould never received inappropriate pressure.“The prime minister said at every occasion verbally and in writing that she was the decider, so she was not giving legal advice to the prime minister. She was the decider — the full and final decider,” Wernick said.Wernick also insisted cabinet never discussed the issue."There was never, never, never a cabinet conversation about the prosecution,” he said.Wernick said he told Wilson-Raybould “a lot of her colleagues” were anxious about the possibility SNC Lavalin could close down or move should criminal proceedings go ahead. The company employed more than 9,000 people at the time."Part of my conversations ... was conveying context — that there were a lot of people worried about what would happen, the consequences, not for her, the consequences for the workers and the communities and the suppliers," he said.Wernick said the only pressure Wilson-Raybould would have felt was to do what was best."There's pressure to get it right on every decision. To approve, to not approve, to act, to not act. I am quite sure the minister felt pressure to get it right," Wernick said."There was no inappropriate pressure put on the minister — at any time."Mario Dion, whom Trudeau appointed federal ethics commissioner, ruled Wernick did not break any conflict of interest laws. However, Dion did rule that Trudeau broke ethics rules by improperly interfering in the case.
