David Johnston stepped down as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's “special rapporteur” effective the end of June..Johnston has been leading an investigation into Chinese foreign interference in the last two federal elections since March when appointed by Trudeau..Johnston blamed the “highly partisan atmosphere” and protecting “democratic institutions” as the reasons for stepping down..“When I undertook the task of Independent Special Rapporteur on Foreign Interference, my objective was to help build trust in our democratic institutions,” wrote Johnston in his resignation letter..“I have concluded that, given the highly partisan atmosphere around my appointment and work, my leadership has had the opposite effect.”.Since March, Johnston has been dogged by accusations that he is not the right person for the job because of his close association with Trudeau’s family and the Trudeau Foundation..The Conservatives, NDP, and Bloc Québécois have all maintained that Johnston has a conflict of interest and voted in the House last week on a non-binding resolution for Johnston to step down from an “appearance of bias.”.In the media and testimony in front of a House committee, Johnston said that the reports of his close association with the Trudeau family are false..Johnston said his work is “impartial” and recommended against calling a public inquiry into the Chinese foreign election interference. .Instead, Johnston recommended public hearings, which do not have the power to compel any witness to testify and no option for closed-door testimony to protect witnesses who do not want their testimony made public..“Although I concluded that a public inquiry under the Inquiries Act would not be a useful way to deal with what is almost exclusively classified information,” wrote Johnston..“I recommended public hearings both to educate the public and to consider necessary reforms to various aspects of the government's systems and policies dealing with foreign interference.”.Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner (Calgary Nose Hill, AB) tweeted, “Money and time well spent, I'm sure. What an embarrassing debacle.”
