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Former attorney-general and justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould had a broader succession plan in mind when she recommended Manitoba judge Glenn Joyal for the position of chief justice of the top court in 2017.
The new details on the internal debate surrounding the appointment process emerged Tuesday. According to a source, Ms. Wilson-Raybould’s recommendation for the Supreme Court would have allowed the government to name Provincial Court Justice Ken Champagne, who is Métis, to replace Chief Justice Joyal on the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench, which would have made him the first Indigenous chief justice of any superior court in the country.
Instead, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau opted to follow Canada’s postwar tradition of mostly alternating between anglophone and Quebec francophone chief justices and elevated Justice Richard Wagner to Chief Justice.
A leak from inside the government on Monday to the Canadian Press and CTV News made the highly confidential process for appointing judges to the Supreme Court of Canada a matter of public debate.
The president of the Canadian Bar Association, representing 36,000 lawyers, said the breach “demeans the selection process and ultimately all those who hold the office of judge.”
Speaking in Manitoba on Tuesday, Mr. Trudeau did not condemn the leak.
“One of the most important things is that Canadians know they can continue to have confidence in their judicial system, in the way we operate as a government and the way Canadians can know that we have a strong and independent judiciary,” Mr. Trudeau said.
The leaked information comes amid continuing controversy over Ms. Wilson-Raybould’s allegation that she was put under pressure to intervene when she was attorney-general in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc.
On Tuesday, Liberal MPs voted for the second time in a week to close down any further parliamentary inquiry into high-level political interference in the criminal prosecution of Montreal-based SNC-Lavalin.
This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Aron Yeomanson. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you’re reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.
ALBERTA ELECTION UPDATE
The Senate committee studying the government’s bill to overhaul environmental reviews for resource projects is preparing for a western tour that includes two stops in Alberta for hearings during a provincial election campaign in which energy issues are front and centre.
The United Conservative Party’s promise to repeal legislation that prohibits Alberta teachers from informing parents when a student joins a gay-straight alliance has revived the debate about the peer-support groups.
UCP Leader Jason Kenney released an education platform this week that included repealing a law passed in 2017 by the NDP and reverting to legislation from the final days of former premier Jim Prentice’s government.
Mr. Kenney defended the plan Tuesday.
TODAY’S HEADLINES
China’s expanded ban on Canadian canola seed imports has sent prices of the oilseed tumbling and farmers scrambling to find new buyers as the country’s trade action against Canada escalates.
Leona Alleslev says crossing the floor from the Liberals to the Conservatives has had its challenges.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has managed to do what many thought impossible: Unite the country against her Brexit strategy and deepen divisions over the decision to leave the European Union.
The Democratic-led House failed to override U.S. President Donald Trump’s first veto, salvaging his effort to steer billions of extra dollars to erecting border barriers.
The Trump administration has told a federal appeals court it wants the entire Affordable Care Act struck down.
U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence called for landing astronauts on the moon within five years.
John Ibbitson (The Globe and Mail) on the SNC-Lavalin affair: “How much more damage to the integrity of this country’s legal system is this Prime Minister willing to inflict, in his efforts to discredit these enemies he used to call friends?”
Campbell Clark (The Globe and Mail) on the ethics committee meeting: “It was hard not to feel sympathy for Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, a politician visibly struggling to maintain principles despite being a Liberal MP on the Commons ethics committee during a vote on the SNC-Lavalin affair.”
Neil Macdonald (CBC News) on the SNC-Lavalin affair: “At the very least, Wilson-Raybould and Philpott are now objective allies of the Opposition, and any sensible leader would treat them as such.”
Colin Robertson (The Globe and Mail) on USMCA ratification efforts: “Until Mr. Trump delivers, Canada and Mexico should hold their own ratification efforts. While we should encourage congressional passage, our efforts need to focus on rescinding the steel, aluminum and lumber tariffs. For now, it is up to Mr. Trump and Congress. Let’s see him demonstrate his art of the deal.”
Carlo Dade (The Globe and Mail) on trade relations with China: “Even Canada’s competitors in these markets are worried. Given the void of U.S. leadership, countries that fight for market share need Canada in Asia for strategic political reasons.”
Lawrence Martin (The Globe and Mail) on the Mueller report: “Mr. Trump’s cries of fake news will now carry more weight than ever before. His base will be more rabid than ever. His poll numbers can be expected to rise, perhaps appreciably.”
The Globe and Mail Editorial Board on gun control: “In Canada, the government is close to passing a bill that would stiffen some of the rules around legal gun ownership. But is that enough to limit opportunities for mass shootings?”
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