‘Hounded, veiled threats’: Canada PM Justin Trudeau’s former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould tells of political interference in corruption case
- Jody Wilson-Raybould testified that 11 people in Trudeau’s government tried to interfere in her decision to prosecute Quebec engineering giant SNC-Lavalin
- Wilson-Raybould said she ‘looked him in the eye’ as she asked Trudeau if he was politically interfering with her role as attorney general
Canada’s former attorney general testified Wednesday she experienced a consistent and sustained effort by many people in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government to inappropriately pressure her into vetoing the criminal prosecution of a major Canadian engineering company and said it included “veiled threats.”
Jody Wilson-Raybould said Wednesday that 11 people tried to interfere in her prosecutorial discretion and said in a meeting with Trudeau, the prime minister raised the issue and asked her to “help out” with the case.
Wilson-Raybould said she “looked him in the eye” as she asked Trudeau if he was politically interfering with her role as attorney general, and if he was “I would strongly advise against it”.
“No, no, no. We just need a find a solution,” she said Trudeau responded.
She said Trudeau told her that if Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin didn’t get a deferred prosecution – a so-called remediation agreement instead of a criminal prosecution – there would be jobs lost and the firm would move from Montreal to London. Wilson-Raybould said she was “barraged” and subjected to “hounding” by members of the government.
She said some staff raised the importance of an election in Quebec in discussions about her decision.
Trudeau’s government has been on the defensive since the Globe and Mail newspaper reported on February 7 that Trudeau or his staff pressured her to try to avoid a criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin over allegations of corruption involving government contracts in Libya. Critics say that would be improper political meddling in a legal case. Wilson-Raybould promised to give “her truth” at a justice committee meeting.
The scandal has been a significant blow to Trudeau, who is facing an election this year.
Gerald Butts, Trudeau’s closest adviser, resigned last week but denied that he or anyone else pressured Wilson-Raybould. Michael Wernick, the top civil servant in the government, has also said that no inappropriate pressure was put on Wilson-Raybould and that Trudeau repeatedly assured Wilson-Raybould the decision on the SNC-Lavalin prosecution was hers alone.
Wilson-Raybould resigned from the Cabinet on February 12 as veteran affairs minister but gave no reasons. She had been demoted from justice minister last month, and was furious, releasing a 2,000-word statement after that.
The Globe and Mail’s report this month said Trudeau’s office pressured her to instruct the director of public prosecutions to negotiate a remediation agreement with SNC-Lavalin. The agreement would have allowed the company to pay reparations but avoid a criminal trial on charges of corruption and bribery.
If convicted criminally, the company would be banned from receiving any federal government business for a decade. SNC-Lavalin is a major employer in Quebec, with about 3,400 employees in the province, 9,000 employees in Canada and more than 50,000 worldwide.
