Canada PM Justin Trudeau’s government in crisis after minister quits over corruption probe

Jody Wilson-Raybould’s resignation followed demands for the government to come clean about whether Trudeau’s office had pressured her to intervene in the prosecution of construction firm SNC-Lavalin

SNC-Lavalin’s been charged with with corruption for allegedly bribing officials in Libya, and the World Bank banned it from bidding on projects due to ‘misconduct’ in Bangladesh and Cambodia.

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Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is facing criticism over possible intervention into the corruption probe of a construction firm. Photo: Reuters

Published: 10:21am, 13 Feb 2019Updated: 9:35pm, 13 Feb 2019

A Canadian minister’s sudden resignation on Tuesday turned vague allegations of interference in the criminal prosecution of an engineering giant into a deepening political crisis for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals.

Jody Wilson-Raybould’s resignation followed a chorus of demands for the government to come clean about whether Trudeau’s office had pressured her to intervene in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin.

The Montreal-based firm was charged in 2015 with corruption for allegedly bribing officials in Libya between 2001 and 2011 to secure government contracts during former strongman Moamer Kadhafi’s reign.

Jody Wilson-Raybould, who was Canada’s first indigenous attorney general and justice minister before being shuffled to another post last month, announced on Twitter that “with a heavy heart” she was leaving the cabinet.

Trudeau said he was “surprised and disappointed”.

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Canadian Veterans Affairs Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould watches Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a cabinet meeting. Photo: Reuters