Justin Trudeau scandal: Corruption allegations put Canadian PM's government under pressure

Former minister accuses officials of trying to derail corruption trial, in damaging testimony

A senior ally has publicly backed embattled Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, as a political storm threatens his premiership.

Chrystia Freeland, the country’s popular foreign minister, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that she had “100 per cent” faith in the premier.

On Wednesday Jody Wilson-Raybould, Mr Trudeau’s former justice minister, publicly accused government officials of a consistent and sustained effort to pressure her into helping a major construction company avoid a corruption trial.

Her testimony triggered immediate calls for the prime minister’s resignation.

SNC-Lavalin, a construction and engineering firm, was charged in 2015 by the Public Prosecution Service of Canada with bribing Libyan officials to influence the awarding of contracts between 2001 and 2011.

Ms Wilson-Raybould said that Mr Trudeau, his staff and other officials “barraged” and “hounded” her while trying to convince her to avoid a criminal prosecution of the company.

She said they instead pushed for an agreement that would let the company pay reparations but avoid a conviction.

SNC-Lavalin employs around 9,000 people in Canada, with about 3,400 of those employees based in Quebec, a key province for Mr Trudeau’s Liberal Party.

The party needs to increase its number of seats in the province to retain its hold on the Canadian government.

Ms Wilson-Raybould said the prime minister warned her that a criminal prosecution would drive the firm and its jobs out of Canada. She also complained of pressure from Gerald Butts, Mr Trudeau’s former principal secretary.

Mr Trudeau has acknowledged discussing the firm with his former justice secretary but claims the issue was raised in an appropriate manner.

“Canadians expect their government to look for ways to protect jobs, to grow the economy and that’s exactly what we have done,” he said on Thursday.

“We’ve also done it in a way that has respected our laws.”

“The prime minister would never apply improper pressure,” Ms Freeland, seen by some as a possible successor, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Another senior Liberal Party official said that there was no discussion, for now, about replacing Mr Trudeau as party leader.

But the prime minister is facing opposition calls to resign and the scandal could prove damaging as the country prepares for federal elections in October.

Ms Wilson-Raybould was demoted to veterans’ affairs minister in January and resigned from the cabinet on 12 February.

She remains a member of the Liberal Party.

Additional reporting by agencies. This article was originally published on 1 March 2019.