The government’s refusal to provide potential records on the prime minister’s role in the SNC-Lavalin scandal limited the capability of law enforcement to fully investigate the matter, according to RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme. Mr. Duheme appeared before the House of Commons ethics committee on Feb. 27, which is starting its study of the RCMP’s decision to not pursue a criminal investigation into Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s role in the SNC-Lavalin affair.
During the committee meeting, Mr. Duheme faced two hours of questioning on why the RCMP did not pursue an investigation into allegations that Mr. Trudeau obstructed justice. Conservative MP Michael Cooper asked Mr. Duheme whether the refusal from the Privy Council Office to expand the disclosure of information significantly impeded the full investigation into the prime minister’s potential obstruction of justice. Mr. Duheme replied, “It limited our capability of pursuing a full investigation.”
The RCMP had obtained a waiver from the government to interview certain witnesses, including former Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould. The investigation into Mr. Trudeau began in 2019 with regards to potential obstruction of justice and intimidation of a justice system participant, related to the prime minister’s actions towards Ms. Wilson-Raybould over the SNC-Lavalin case. The RCMP officials defended their investigation, stating that they have to work within the parameters they’re given. Mr. Duheme suggested that having fewer documents protected by cabinet confidences would be good for transparency and upholding public confidence.
Bloc Québécois MP René Villemure asked the RCMP if MPs should seek greater access to confidential documents. Mr. Duheme expressed no objections to the recommendation for transparency and committed to providing additional documents to the ethics committee to show the timeline of events surrounding the affair. However, advocacy group Democracy Watch called the RCMP’s investigation into Mr. Trudeau weak and stated that a public inquiry with access to all internal RCMP and Cabinet documents is necessary to determine the full extent of what occurred in the Trudeau Cabinet and RCMP.