THUNDER BAY – The lone Northwestern Ontario representative in the Trudeau cabinet believes the prime minister is disappointed that he was unaware of the breakdown in trust between the former attorney general and one of his most trusted staffers.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, during a Thursday morning news conference in Ottawa, addressed the SNC-Lavalin controversy that has engulfed the federal Liberal government and said justice committee testimony from Jody Wilson-Raybould and former Prime Minister’s Office principal secretary Gerald Butts showed there was an erosion of trust between the pair.
Trudeau, who did not apologize and maintained that there was no inappropriate pressure applied to Wilson-Raybould, said he directed his staff members to engage Wilson-Raybould on the SNC-Lavalin matter and conceded he should have reached out personally.
Wilson-Raybould resigned from cabinet last month after being shuffled out of the justice minister and attorney general position, insisting that she was subjected to inappropriate pressure to offer a deferred prosecution agreement to SNC-Lavalin.
The Quebec-based engineering and construction firm is facing fraud and corruption charges. A conviction could result in the company being banned from bidding on federal projects for 10 years, potentially endangering as many as 9,000 jobs.
Patty Hajdu, the minister of employment, workforce development and labour, was later asked about Trudeau’s response to the scandal and reaffirmed her support for the prime minister.
“I’m sure it’s very disappointing for him to hear that the trust broke down to that degree and I think moving forward his commitment to examining the processes in his own office and examining that role in particular are very important takeaways,” Hajdu said.
Trudeau indicated that consideration will be given to separating the justice minister from the attorney general position.
Hajdu, who acknowledged that the combined justice minister and attorney general role is different than that of a typical cabinet minister, said she has never felt pressured by Trudeau or anyone on his staff.
“My relationship has been profoundly strong and open and honest with the Prime Minister’s Office and with my own team,” Hajdu said.
“Have we struggled over difficult files? Have I been in disagreement with my colleagues or the prime minister at times? Yes, but I’ve always felt OK to go forward and tell him why I’m concerned and I’ve always felt he has considered my perspective as we’ve moved forward on those difficult files.”
Hajdu had worked with Wilson-Raybould early in the government’s mandate, as they were two of the three ministers initially tasked by Trudeau with launching the national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women.
The controversy continued to grow earlier this week, when Treasury Board president Jane Philpott quit cabinet over the government’s response to the scandal. In a statement, Philpott said that there “can be a cost to acting on one’s principles, but there is a bigger cost to abandoning them.”
The loss of Wilson-Raybould and Philpott from cabinet will be a loss, Hajdu said, but she added that she remains confident in the group.
“People have to act according to their own perspectives, their own principles but having said that we have an incredibly strong team of people,” Hajdu said.
“I will miss the input of the former attorney general and Dr. Philpott but I will also enjoy my continued relationships with them as members of Parliament.”
Hajdu wouldn’t answer whether she believes Wilson-Raybould and Philpott should remain in the Liberal caucus, explaining that decision should rest with Trudeau and the entire caucus.
