Bloc, Conservatives and NDP tie with C- while Liberals get a D- and PPC an F

Great to see Green Party again promise to enact a partial honesty-in-politics law but, given lack of law and past pattern of ruling party breaking half of democratic reform promises, voters should be very skeptical of every promise made by every party

Party leaders should agree to 8 key, written rules to have a fair post-election, and fair government, especially if it is a minority government

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Friday, April 25, 2025

OTTAWA – Today, Democracy Watch released its Report Card on the Federal Parties’ 2025 Democratic Reform Platforms which evaluates their platforms in five key areas of democratic good government (See the Report Card below and click here to see the grading system and criteria).

Many surveys over the past 15 years have shown that a large majority of voters do not trust politicians, and want strong honesty, ethics, lobbying, political finance, open government and other democracy and accountability reforms to stop politicians from abusing their power.  Hundreds of thousands of messages have been sent to federal party leaders and politicians through Democracy Watch’s campaigns calling for the dozens of key changes needed to ensure fully democratic and accountable federal government and politics.

The Green Party received a B as the best grade of overall bad grades for all the parties, which ties the best grade any party has ever received going back to 1993.  The Bloc, Conservatives and NDP all tied with C- while the Liberals received a D- and the PPC an F.

However, given the current lack of an honesty-in-politics law, and the fact that Prime Minister Chrétien, Prime Minister Harper, and Prime Minister Trudeau all failed to keep half of their democratic reform promises (Prime Minister Martin didn’t make any), voters should be very skeptical of every promise made by every party.

“While it is notable that the Green Party has promised a partial honesty-in-politics law covering only false claims made in election advertising, given the current lack of such a law, voters should be wary of trusting any political promises,” said Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch.

The Green Party’s platform is fairly detailed and comprehensive in four of the five areas evaluated, with their lowest grade in the area of Efficient Government as they proposed fewer and mostly vague government spending accountability measures.  Unfortunately, the Greens also propose (on p. 89 of their platform) exploring the implementation of online voting which is very dangerous because the vote count can’t be verified, and the implementation of mandatory voting which would violate the Charter unless a right to vote “none of the above” is also enacted.

The Mark Carney Liberals’ D- grade platform is a failure compared to their 2015 election platform that received a B grade, and is as weak as the Liberals’ (un)democratic reform record since 2015, which has included: Prime Minister Trudeau breaking his electoral reform promise; the Liberals breaking most of their open government promises and ignoring recommendations to stop secret, fake online election ads in a unanimous House Committee report; Trudeau and Liberal Cabinet ministers being involved in many secrecy and ethics scandals (including the SNC-Lavalin scandal) and covering up foreign interference and delaying an inquiry and laws to address it; and, most recently, Trudeau proroguing Parliament; Mark Carney calling a snap election before key anti-foreign interference and whistleblower protection measures were enacted and hiding his investments that cause financial conflicts of interest.

“Mark Carney has shown clear signs of having a ‘father knows best’ attitude that favours secrecy over transparency and is dismissive of unethical conflicts of interest, and the Liberals’ negligently weak democratic reform and government accountability election platform is a worrying signal that he wants power with few restrictions and little accountability,” said Conacher.

The Conservatives C- grade platform was very weak compared to their 2006 election platform when they were elected into power – in that platform the Conservatives promised 60 comprehensive democratic reform and government accountability changes in their so-called “Federal Accountability Act”, and earned them a B grade.

“The Conservative platform pales in comparison to their 2006 Federal Accountability Act platform that promised 60 comprehensive democratic and accountability reforms, as their “Accountability Act 2.0” promises would only make 10 changes, nine strengthening ethics rules and one partially increasing lobbying disclosure,” said Conacher. “It is worrying also that the Conservative platform doesn’t even mention or propose any measures to stop disinformation given that it threatens democracy and is a main means of foreign interference in Canadian politics.”

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s pledge to use the notwithstanding clause is also very concerning — DWatch recently joined with more than 25 other organizations in calling on all party leaders to commit to a public consultation on restricting the use of the clause.

The NDP’s C- grade platform is also very weak compared to their 2015 election platform when they earned a B grade.

“Given a large majority of voters want comprehensive democratic reforms, it is unfortunate for the NDP that they continue to forget their middle name when making election promises,” said Conacher.

“While all the federal parties, especially the Greens, have some key democracy reforms and promise some important general accountability reforms in their platforms, they all unfortunately continue to fail to promise to close key loopholes and correct key flaws in federal laws, and to ignore high voter concern about democracy and trust issues,” said Conacher.  “Canadians can only hope that the parties will actually address these concerns when Parliament opens again so that everyone in federal politics will, finally after 158 years, be effectively required to act honestly, ethically, openly, representatively and to prevent waste.”

Democracy Watch’s campaigns and coalitions will keep pushing for the dozens of key changes needed to ensure everyone in federal politics is effectively required to be honest, ethical and transparent, and to make representative decisions and to prevent waste.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch
Tel: (613) 241-5179
Cell: 416-546-3443
Email: [email protected]

Democracy Watch’s Campaigns page

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Democracy Watch
Report Card on the Federal Parties’
2025 Democratic Reform Platforms

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Sources:

Click here to see the grading system and criteria used to assess the parties’ platforms.

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Bloc Québécois platform webpage (PDF)

NOTE: See p. 19 re: Representative Government promises to establish a discrimination ombudsman, eliminate mention of the monarchy from the citizenship oath and the public office oath; p. 24 for promises re: anti-foreign interference, public funding for political parties, strengthening Ethics Commissioner, reforming the Access to Information Act and tightening the lobbyists registry.

For General Government Accountability promises see: p. 9 re: consumer protection; p. 14 re: various, including transnational repression and corporate responsibility measures; p. 23 re: closing tax haven and tax evasion loopholes; p. 24 re: merit-based government applications, strengthening Export Development Canada (EDC) accountability, strengthening the Privacy Act, requiring public inquiry commissioners to be appointed by Parliament (instead of by the ruling party Cabinet), and strengthening whistleblower protection; p. 25 re: strengthening criminal law enforcement and justice reforms, and; p. 28-31 re: environmental protection

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Conservative Party of Canada platform webpage

NOTE: See pages 13-14 of platform PDF for Honest, Ethical Government and Open Government promises strengthening conflict of interest rules, disclosure rules, enforcement and penalties; p. 16 re: requiring third parties to disclose funding sources, strengthening anti-money laundering, anti-financial crime and anti-foreign interference enforcement, and expelling foreign agents;

For Efficient Government promises p. 13 re: one-for-one spending law reducing spending or increasing revenues to offset any new spending, only replace 2 of every 3 public employees who leave the federal government, ban federal government employees from also having government contracts, and cut $10.5 billion in spending on consultants;
For General Government Accountability promises, see: p. 5 re: Taxpayer Protection Act to prohibit raising taxes without a referendum; closing tax loopholes; p. 8 re: an oligopoly review and banning write-offs for luxury private jets; p. 10 re: increasing accountability for municipalities building houses; p. 11 re: strengthening criminal law enforcement, including in the area of online harassment; p. 12 re: anti-racketeering, anti-money laundering and anti-forced and child labour laws and other criminal law reforms; p. 13 re: closing offshore tax loopholes and strengthening enforcement, and using plain language laws; p. 15 re: strengthened border enforcement; p. 16 re: Farmland Protection Act to prevent foreign ownership; p. 17 re: requiring union LMIA pre-checks, criminal background checks for foreign students and quicker removal of people on visitor visas who commit crimes; p. 19 re: launch a $44 billion lawsuit against Big Pharma to pay for addiction treatment and recovery; p. 20 re: respecting union rights, and; p. 21 re: Stop Scamming Seniors Act to force banks and telecom companies to help stop fraud scams.

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Green Party of Canada platform webpage

NOTE: For Honest, Ethical Government promises, see in platform PDF: p. 40 and p. 86 re: strengthening anti-foreign interference and anti-disinformation measures, including truth in political advertising rules; p. 90 re: lowering the donation limit, strengthening third-party finance rules, implementing a per-vote subsidy, establishing a foreign-agent registry, strengthening anti-foreign interference enforcement, empowering the Commissioner of Canada Elections to penalize false political advertising, requiring more transparency in reporting of survey results and increasing accountability; p. 91 re: strengthening ethics rules, closing the revolving door of people leaving government and becoming lobbyists, strengthening the independence and investigative powers of the Ethics Commissioner and Commissioner of Lobbying; p. 116 re: regulate social media and digital platforms to make them more transparent and accountable for all content published, including libel, slander, disinformation and election interference, and strengthen digital rights protections.

For Open Government promises, see: pp. 91-92 re: increasing lobbying disclosure requirements, strengthening the independence and investigative powers of the Information Commissioner (including reviewing Cabinet confidentiality claims), ensuring proactive disclosure of government documents and timely responses to access to information requests, applying the law to minister’s offices, scrapping most access fees, overriding secrecy exemptions in the public interest.
For Representative Government promises, see: p. 81 re: lowering the voting age to 16; pp. 89-90 re: implementing a proportional representation voting system through a Citizen Assembly process and requiring parties to report on candidate recruitment from underrepresented groups; p. 90 re: restrict the use of the notwithstanding clause; pp. 99-100 respect Quebec’s power over areas of provincial and shared jurisdiction; p. 110 re: prohibit advocating or assisting in the annexation of Canada by a foreign power; p. 114 re: restrict foreign ownership and control of media.
For Efficient Government promises, see: p. 21 re: ensure transparent and fair procurement processes; p. 91 re: strengthening the independence and investigative powers of the Auditor General and Parliamentary Budget Officer, and replacing the House Board of Internal Economy with an independent committee to oversee MP spending, enhance oversight and accountability to prevent misuse of taxpayer dollars, reduce wasteful spending at the by politicians including reducing the Prime Minister’s Office budget from $10 million to $1 million.
For General Government Accountability promises see: pp. 5-7 re: increasing corporate and wealth taxes and close tax haven and tax evasion loopholes; p. 7 end corporate subsidies that don’t provide benefits and support international pollution tax and financial services tax; pp. 8-9 strengthen worker rights; pp. 12-13 re: protect critical resources and industries from foreign takeover and increase accountability of foreign companies in Canada; p. 14 re: ensure fair trade; pp. 15-17 protect natural resources; p. 22 ensure transparency and accountability in CPP investments; pp. 33-34 protect agriculture industry and farm worker rights; pp. 42-43 re: strengthen border protection and ensure military spending and actions are ethical; pp. 47-54 re: environmental protection measures; p. 58 re: protections for housing affordability, including to stop financial speculation in housing; p. 68 re: banning toxic chemicals; p. 69 re: long term care accountability measures; p. 72 re: disability rights protections; p. 76 re: protections for veterans; p. 78 re: ethical and fair international student recruitment measures; p. 81 re: protections for youth using social media; pp. 84-85 re: protections for gender and women’s rights; p. 91 re: strengthening whistleblower protection; p. 92 re: expanding privacy protections; pp. 95-98 re: implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and increase Indigenous rights and sovereignty generally; p. 105 re: strengthen the accountability of the immigration system and protections for temporary foreign workers; pp. 108-109 re: strengthen the effectiveness of criminal law justice processes, especially for Indigenous and racialized offenders, and ensure jails are humane; p. 118 restrict and regulate Artificial Intelligence in the areas of ethical use, transparency, accountability, environmental impacts and data privacy; pp. 120-121 re: strengthen consumer protections in various business sectors.

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Liberal Party of Canada platform webpage

For Honesty and Government Ethics promises, see: p. 6 re: empowering CBC/Radio Canada  to combat disinformation; p. 9 re: addressing the recommendations to combat military sexual misconduct;
For Representative Government promises, see: pp. 5-6 re: changing CBC/Radio Canada’s governance plan to improve accountability and citizen engagement, and strengthening local news and the inclusion of Indigenous perspectives; pp. 8 and 17 re: vague promises to be “vigilant against foreign interference” and boost resources to fight foreign interference and transnational repression;
For Efficient Government promises, see: pp. 57-58 re: increase federal government spending efficiency and productivity;
For General Government Accountability promises, see in platform PDF: p. 4 re: making housing more accessible; p. 7 re: increasing transparency to help Canadians buy Canadian; p. 12 re: increasing support for veterans; p. 13 re: strengthening the Investment Canada Act to prevent foreign takeovers of key industries and the public health care system; p. 16 re: protecting marine life; pp. 16-17 re: strengthening gun control and border protection; pp. 18-19 re: strengthening criminal law enforcement, including of anti-hate laws; pp. 27-28 re: protecting the environment; pp. 31-33 re: enhance Charter rights and anti-discrimination protections, including by expanding the Court Challenges Program; p. 34 re: implement the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act and Action Plan; p. 35 pass legislation affirming First Nations’ right to clean drinking water; p. 38 re: make mortgages more affordable and make big polluters pay; p. 42 re: reinforcing the immigration system’s integrity and border integrity; pp. 46-47 measures to make big polluters pay and require companies to disclose climate risks; p. 52 re: strengthen the social safety net; p. 55 re: make the tax system fairer and to close loopholes and strengthen enforcement; pp. 64-65 committing to continuing to screen government commitments and actions using the Gender-Based Analysis tool.

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NDP platform webpage (no PDF available)

NOTE: See in “Strengthening Canada’s democracy” section promises re: establishing a Citizen Assembly to advise on implementing a mixed member proportional voting system, lowering the voting age to 16-17, make voting more accessible by putting Indigenous languages on ballots, implementing a three-day voting period and strengthening voting on campuses, restoring federal government Ministries for women and gender equality and for people with disabilities and for diversity, implementing a comprehensive approach to combat transnational repression, implement the recommendations of the Hogue Commission on foreign interference, enact anti-disinformation and misinformation measures, and implement the foreign agent registry.

In Revenue Measures section see Efficient Government promises re: reducing the number of expensive external contractors, increasing transparency and accountability in the federal government budget-making process, and linking spending to policy outcomes.
For General Government Accountability promises, see: sections on public health care, rent control and tenant protection, cap on grocery prices, taxing extreme wealth, protecting essential industries, making big polluters pay, passing an Environmental Bill of Rights and establishing an Office of Environmental Justice and passing a biodiversity accountability law, upholding Indigenous rights and implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommendations  and equalizing funding for social welfare for Indigenous children, a surtax on the most profitable corporations, close tax haven loopholes.

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People’s Party of Canada platform webpage

NOTE: See pages 14-15 of platform PDF re: Efficient Government promises.

For General Government Accountability promises, see: p. 18 re: combatting money laundering; p. 23 re: eliminating corporate subsidies, and; p. 23 re: veterans’ rights.

87% think it’s important for voters to know who has lobbied which politicians before deciding how to vote and whether to support policies

Secret, unethical lobbying is legal because the federal Commissioner of Lobbying and all MPs have gutted ethics rules, failed to close loopholes

DWatch calls on all parties to disclose, before election day, everyone who has fundraised, campaigned or assisted them significantly in the past year

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, April 16, 2025

OTTAWA – Today, Democracy Watch released the national survey it commissioned from Nanos Research that shows more than 80% of Canadians are concerned about the corrupting effects of secret, unethical lobbying on politicians’ policy-making decisions, and want to know about all lobbying activities.  Nanos did the hybrid telephone and online random survey of 1,077 Canadians, 18 years of age or older, between January 31 and February 3, 2025, as part of an omnibus survey. The margin of error for the survey is ±3.0 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

Democracy Watch has contacted all federal parties calling on them to, before election day, disclose everyone who has fundraised or campaigned or assisted them in any significant way in the past year, including during the Liberal Party leadership contest, as voters have a right to know before they vote who each party owes, especially if they owe any lobbyists or people who work at lobbying firms or businesses or organizations who lobby the federal government.

Secret, unethical lobbying is legal in federal politics because of a “dirty dozen” huge secret lobbying loopholes in the federal lobbying law that all federal parties have failed to close, and because the Commissioner of Lobbying and MPs from all parties gutted key ethical lobbying rules in the Lobbyists’ Code of Conduct in 2023 even though 26 citizen groups with a total membership of more than one million Canadians, and more than 20,000 voters, and dozens of law, politics and ethics professors and lawyers opposed gutting the rules.

The “dirty dozen” secret lobbying loopholes make it easy to lobby in secret, especially for big business lobbyists. The unethical lobbying loopholes allow lobbyists to secretly campaign for and/or secretly assist a politician or party in significant ways and lobby them at the same time, and to secretly fundraise an unlimited amount of money for a politician or party and/or secretly campaign for them full-time, and then lobby them within 1 to 2 years afterwards. The Commissioner of Lobbying can also secretly reduce that “cooling-off” time period, and also give secret exemptions that allow lobbyists to give expensive gifts and meals to politicians and government officials.

The survey results (PDF) show that 84-87% of Canadians surveyed said they think:

(i) that a politician who receives undisclosed assistance (fundraising, campaigning, event organizing etc.) from a lobbyist is less likely or somewhat less likely to act in the public interest;

(ii) that they are uncomfortable or somewhat uncomfortable with a lobbyist lobbying a politician within 1 to 2 years after assisting the politician;

(iii) that it is important to know who has lobbied a politician, and how much they have been lobbied, when deciding which government policies to support and who to vote for, and;

(iv) that it is important to know whether a lobbyist has been given an exemption by the Commissioner of Lobbying to the rules that limit the value of gifts given to politicians, and that prohibit a lobbyist from lobbying for 1 to 2 years after assisting a politician.

As well, about 69% of people surveyed said they think that a politician who receives undisclosed gifts worth only up to $200 a year from a lobbyist is less likely or somewhat less likely to act in the public interest.

“A large majority of voters are understandably concerned about lobbyists secretly fundraising, campaigning and doing favours for politicians and political parties, and then asking them to return the favours soon afterwards,” said Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch.  “All the federal parties should disclose before election day the list of everyone who has fundraised or campaigned or assisted them in any significant way in the past year, including during the Liberal Party leadership contest, as voters have a right to know before they vote who has bankrolled and done other favours for each party, and who each party owes.”

“It’s outrageous that MPs from all parties have left open loopholes in the federal lobbying law that allow for secret lobbying, and that they all worked with the Commissioner of Lobbying to create new loopholes to allow lobbyists to essentially secretly bribe them with fundraising, working on campaigns and other favours,” said Conacher.  “Until all of these loopholes are closed, secret corrupt favour-trading between lobbyists and politicians will continue to be legal and will undermine every federal policy-making and government contracting process.”

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch
Tel: (613) 241-5179
Cell: 416-546-3443
Email: [email protected]

Democracy Watch’s Stop Secret, Unethical Lobbying Campaign and Government Ethics Campaign and Money in Politics Campaign

 

Application in Ottawa provincial court calls for impartial process and open court hearing to consider evidence of obstruction of justice and breach of trust

RCMP did weak investigation, made a secret, behind-closed doors, very questionable decision not to prosecute, and hid investigation records and is still hiding key evidence – independent anti-corruption police force needed

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Friday, March 21, 2025

OTTAWA – Today, Democracy Watch released the letter it has sent to Ontario’s Attorney General Doug Downey calling on him to have an independently appointed special prosecutor review the evidence and DWatch’s application in the Ontario Court of Justice in Ottawa for approval from the court to proceed with a private prosecution of former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for pressuring, and directing others to pressure, then-Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould to stop the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin in 2018 (now operating under the name “AtkinsRéalis”).

Wayne Crookes, founder of Integrity B.C., is a key supporter of the application.  Jen Danch of Swadron Associates law firm, is representing Democracy Watch for the application.

The application includes a legal opinion by a retired superior court justice (who did the opinion on the condition of remaining anonymous) supporting prosecuting the PM for the allegation of obstruction of justice, and possibly also for breach of trust.  The application also includes a “will say” document that summarizes the reasons for the application, and a summary of how the RCMP failed to investigate and uphold the law properly.

As detailed in Democracy Watch’s recent news release, the RCMP’s investigation was weak, incomplete, delayed and buried for years, and amounts to an attempted cover up.  The RCMP only interviewed four of 15 key witnesses, and is hiding key testimony from Wilson-Raybould, her Chief of Staff Jessica Prince, and her friend and confidante Jane Philpott.  The RCMP also accepted the Trudeau Cabinet hiding key internal communication records, and trusted without question the biased, self-interested public statements of the PM and everyone else who pressured the AG.

In addition, and importantly, as Democracy Watch’s “will say” document details, the RCMP applied an improper legal standard for proving obstruction of justice, and didn’t even consider prosecuting anyone for the general violation of breach of trust.

“The RCMP did a very superficial investigation into the Trudeau Cabinet’s obstruction of the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, didn’t even interview many witnesses or try to obtain key secret Cabinet communication records, and buried the investigation with an almost two-year delay, and then made a behind-closed-doors, very questionable decision not to prosecute anyone,” said Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch. “Democracy Watch’s position is that the evidence and testimony of all witnesses should be considered by a judge in an open court hearing, and that is why it is applying for court approval to proceed with a private prosecution.”

Ontario’s Attorney General has the power to have a Crown prosecutor step in and take over the prosecution, and then stop it from proceeding.  The next steps in the private prosecution process are a “speak to” hearing on Friday, March 28th in Ottawa where a judge will consider procedural issues including scheduling a “pre-enquête” hearing where Democracy Watch would present its evidence and arguments for allowing the prosecution to proceed.

Democracy Watch’s letter today calls on Ontario’s Attorney General, working with opposition party leaders, to establish a committee made up of people who have no ties to any political party.  The committee will choose a lawyer who has no ties to any party to be an Independent Special Prosecutor who will review the evidence and issue a public decision concerning prosecuting Trudeau.  That process is needed to ensure an impartial review and decision concerning whether the Attorney General will have a Crown prosecutor step in, take over and/or stop the prosecution.

“The RCMP lacks independence from the Prime Minister and Cabinet ministers who handpick the RCMP Commissioner and deputy commissioners and division heads through a secretive process, and they all serve at the pleasure of the Cabinet so they are vulnerable to political interference, which is likely part of the reason the RCMP rolled over and let Trudeau off,” said Conacher.  “The Attorney General is also a tainted by partisanship as he is from Ontario’s ruling party and so, to ensure integrity and impartiality, a fully independent special prosecutor needs to be appointed to review the evidence concerning whether the prosecution of Trudeau should proceed.”

“A public inquiry is needed to determine why the RCMP’s national command tried to cover up its investigation, and exactly how and why they and Crown prosecutors decided not to prosecute anyone,” said Conacher. “The RCMP consistently fails to enforce Canada’s anti-corruption laws in a timely, effective way, which shows the need for key changes that many experts have called for to make the RCMP more independent, effective and publicly accountable, especially when it is investigating corruption cases, or even better to establish a new fully independent anti-corruption police force including fully independent prosecutors.”

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch
Tel: (613) 241-5179
Cell: 416-546-3443
Email: [email protected]

Democracy Watch’s Government Ethics Campaign, Stop Unfair Law Enforcement Campaign and Open Government Campaign

La Cour provinciale d’Ottawa demande une procédure impartiale et une audience publique pour examiner les preuves d’obstruction à la justice et d’abus de confiance

La GRC a mené une enquête médiocre, a pris en secret, derrière des portes closes, une décision très discutable de ne pas engager de poursuites, a caché des dossiers d’enquête et cache toujours des preuves essentielles – une force de police anticorruption indépendante est nécessaire

POUR PUBLICATION IMMÉDIATE:
Vendredi 21 mars 2025

Pour diffusion immédiate:
Vendredi 21 mars 2025

OTTAWA – Aujourd’hui, Democracy Watch a publié la lettre qu’elle a envoyée au procureur général de l’Ontario Doug Downey lui demandant de faire en sorte qu’un procureur spécial nommé de manière indépendante examine les preuves et le rapport de DWatchdemande à la Cour de justice de l’Ontario à Ottawa pour obtenir l’approbation de la cour afin de procéder à une poursuite privée de l’ancien Premier ministre Justin Trudeau pour avoir fait pression, et ordonné à d’autres de faire pression sur Jody Wilson-Raybould, alors procureur général, pour qu’elle arrête les poursuites contre SNC-Lavalin en 2018 (qui opère maintenant sous le nom d'”AtkinsRéalis”).

Wayne Crookes, fondateur d’Integrity B.C., est l’un des principaux défenseurs de la demande. Jen Danch, du Swadron Associates law firm, représente Democracy Watch pour la requête.

avis juridique d’un juge de la Cour supérieure à la retraite (qui a émis l’avis à la condition de rester anonyme) soutenant la poursuite du Premier ministre pour l’allégation d’obstruction à la justice, et peut-être aussi pour abus de confiance. La demande comprend également un document “will say” document qui résume les raisons de la demande, et un résumé de la façon dont la GRC a échoué à enquêter et à faire respecter la loi correctement.

recent news release), l’enquête de la GRC a été faible, incomplète, retardée et enterrée pendant des années, ce qui équivaut à une tentative d’étouffement de l’affaire. La GRC n’a interrogé que quatre des 15 témoins clés et cache des témoignages essentiels de Mme Wilson-Raybould, de sa chef de cabinet Jessica Prince et de son amie et confidente Jane Philpott. La GRC a également accepté que le Cabinet Trudeau cache des documents de communication interne essentiels, et a fait confiance sans discussion aux déclarations publiques biaisées et intéressées du Premier ministre et de tous ceux qui ont exercé des pressions sur le procureur général.

“will say” document, la GRC a appliqué une norme juridique inappropriée pour prouver l’obstruction à la justice, et n’a même pas envisagé de poursuivre qui que ce soit pour la violation générale de l’abus de confiance.

“La GRC a mené une enquête très superficielle sur l’obstruction du Cabinet Trudeau à la poursuite de SNC-Lavalin, n’a même pas interrogé de nombreux témoins ou essayé d’obtenir des documents secrets de communication du Cabinet, et a enterré l’enquête avec un retard de près de deux ans, puis a pris une décision à huis clos, très discutable, de ne poursuivre personne”, a déclaré Duff Conacher, cofondateur de Democracy Watch.d’intervenir et de prendre en charge la poursuite, puis de l’empêcher d’aller de l’avant. Les prochaines étapes du processus de poursuite privée sont une audience “speak to” le vendredi 28 mars à Ottawa où un juge examinera les questions de procédure, y compris la programmation d’une audience “pre-enquête” où Democracy Watch présenterait ses preuves et ses arguments pour permettre à la poursuite d’aller de l’avant.

La procédure de poursuite privée est en cours.

La lettre d’aujourd’hui de Democracy Watch demande au procureur général de l’Ontario, en collaboration avec les chefs des partis d’opposition, de mettre en place un comité composé de personnes n’ayant aucun lien avec un parti politique. Le comité choisira un avocat qui n’est lié à aucun parti pour être un procureur spécial indépendant qui examinera les preuves et rendra une décision publique concernant la poursuite de Trudeau. Ce processus est nécessaire pour garantir un examen et une décision impartiaux concernant la question de savoir si le procureur général demandera à un procureur de la Couronne d’intervenir, de prendre le relais et/ou d’arrêter les poursuites.

“La GRC manque d’indépendance par rapport au Premier ministre et aux ministres du Cabinet qui choisissent le commissaire de la GRC, les commissaires adjoints et les chefs de division par le biais d’un processus secret, et ils servent tous selon le bon vouloir du Cabinet, ce qui les rend vulnérables à l’ingérence politique, ce qui explique probablement en partie pourquoi la GRC s’est inclinée et a laissé Trudeau s’en tirer”, a déclaré M. Conacher.

“Une enquête publique est nécessaire pour déterminer pourquoi le commandement national de la GRC a tenté d’étouffer son enquête et comment et pourquoi les procureurs de la Couronne ont décidé de ne poursuivre personne”, a déclaré M. Conacher. “La GRC ne parvient pas à appliquer les lois anti-corruption du Canada de manière opportune et efficace, ce qui montre la nécessité de changements clés que de nombreux experts ont réclamés pour rendre la GRC plus indépendante, efficace et publiquement responsable, en particulier lorsqu’elle enquête sur des affaires de corruption, ou mieux encore pour établir une nouvelle force de police anti-corruption totalement indépendante y compris des procureurs totalement indépendants.”

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POUR PLUS D’INFORMATIONS, CONTACTEZ:
Duff Conacher, Co-fondateur de Democracy Watch
Tel : (613) 241-5179
Cell : 416-546-3443
Email : [email protected]

La campagne de Démocratie en surveillance Gouvernement éthique, Stop Unfair Law Enforcement Campaign et Open Government Campaign

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