OTTAWA – Days after special rapporteur David Johnston resigned the Bloc Québécois is already proposing names of Quebecers it deems capable of overseeing a public inquiry into foreign interference.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet shared those names in an email sent Monday evening to Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who has been tasked by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to consult with opposition parties on next steps after Johnston resigned Friday as special rapporteur, throwing into doubt Johnston’s plan to avoid an official inquiry and to chair a series of public hearings, instead.
First on the Bloc’s list is former Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour, who also served as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, which Blanchet praised for her “exemplary record of service” and her “highly pertinent past experiences” in leading such an inquiry.
Arbour was appointed in 2021 by the Trudeau government to review the military’s handling of sexual assault allegations and delivered her report in 2022.
Arbour also briefly served as mentor for the Trudeau Foundation for former scholar Pascale Fournier two decades ago. Fournier went on to become a lawyer and served as head of the foundation for five years before quitting in the midst of controversy over a major donation to the foundation allegedly linked to a Chinese state-backed influence campaign.
Blanchet also suggested Louise Otis, a former justice of the Quebec Court of Appeal who is currently president of the administrative tribunal of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF).
He also proposed former Liberal minister of justice and attorney general Irwin Cotler as well as Canada’s former ambassador to China, Guy St-Jacques.
Cotler is an outspoken advocate for human rights, having recently been appointed as Canada’s special envoy for combating antisemitism. St-Jacques has extensive knowledge of China, having served as ambassador for four years, and speaks fluent Mandarin.
Blanchet also said in his correspondence that it could be appropriate to add a deputy commissioner, and suggested former chief electoral officer Jean-Pierre Kingsley for the role.
Of course, every party could bring forward highly-qualified candidates that I will consider with great interest.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet
Kingsley has advocated in recent months for a public inquiry into foreign interference, arguing that only an inquiry would re-establish Canadians’ trust in their electoral system.
“Of course, every party could bring forward highly-qualified candidates that I will consider with great interest,” wrote Blanchet. “I hope these suggestions will launch a discussion.”
LeBlanc said the Bloc’s suggestions represent “a positive step forward.”
“I think it’s a constructive effort to advance the conversation. The names, at first look, are not unreasonable,” he said, adding that he would not comment on the names further as these people have probably not yet been approached.
The Liberals have not agreed to hold a public inquiry, and had instead deferred to Johnston, who had been appointed “special rapporteur” with the task of determining whether to hold one or not. In his first report investigating allegations of foreign interference in Canadian electoral politics, delivered on May 23, Johnston had recommended against an inquiry and instead said he would chair a series of public hearings. Opposition parties, who had been calling for an inquiry for several months, then joined together to pass a motion in the House demanding that Johnston resign over his perceived conflicts, due to his personal ties to Trudeau, and reasserting their call for an inquiry.
The Conservative party and the NDP have not yet suggested candidates for a public inquiry, but NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said he had specific criteria in mind.
“A judge, either sitting or a retired judge, and someone who hasn’t donated to a political party in a number of years,” he said. “And particularly, given some of the allegations in this case … someone who is not affiliated with the Trudeau Foundation.”
Singh also said he hopes that representatives of every recognized party engage in a proper vetting process of the candidates, assess their resumes, and then decide unanimously who should be the commissioner to lead a public inquiry.
“It’s a process like that that would give Canadians confidence as well that we’ve done our work, and that we’ve done the proper vetting.”
LeBlanc said the federal government has not agreed to the type of public process that will take place, and that the terms of reference and the choice of person or persons to lead that process still have to be discussed with opposition parties, but he hopes to get the ball rolling before Parliament rises for the summer.
“I’m hopeful by the end of next week we can do the work to at least be in a position to announce the next steps of the public process,” he said.
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