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‘Two sides to every story’ says Sheehan of Trudeau, Wilson-Raybould matter

Sault MP defends Prime Minister’s Office; what does he think of Liberal government’s re-election chances?
20190307-Sault MP Terry Sheehan-DT-01
Sault MP Terry Sheehan, March 7, 2019. Darren Taylor/SooToday

With Prime Minister Justin Trudeau going into damage control mode in the current political drama surrounding Quebec-based SNC-Lavalin (a huge engineering, construction, oil, gas and mining firm), the resignation of two cabinet ministers and his former principal secretary, Sault MP Terry Sheehan said he fully supports Trudeau and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

Jody Wilson-Raybould, former justice minister, has testified before the Commons justice committee she came under ‘consistent and sustained’ pressure from the PMO to halt criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin with what is called a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA).

Wilson-Raybould decided not to do so and eventually resigned from cabinet.

If convicted, the firm could be barred from competing for federal government contracts for 10 years, potentially affecting 9,000 jobs.

Wilson-Raybould said she received approximately 10 phone calls and 10 meetings, specifically about SNC-Lavalin, from the PMO.

“Never before in the history of Canadian parliament has cabinet confidentiality been waived...to allow Jody to tell her story,” Sheehan said, speaking to SooToday Thursday, acknowledging the extraordinary nature of the explosive story.

Wilson-Raybould’s resignation and testimony before the Commons justice committee led to the departure of Gerald Butts, former principal secretary to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and the resignation of Jane Philpott as health minister, Philpott declaring “I have lost confidence in how the government had dealt with this matter and in how it has responded to the issues raised.”

After Wilson-Raybould’s testimony, Butts testified Wednesday the PMO did not pressure Wilson-Raybould to change her mind about the SNC-Lavalin matter, also questioning if 10 phone calls and 10 meetings with the PMO even qualifies as ‘pressure.’

“Last night you heard Gerald Butts telling a story with a totally different perspective on what had happened. There was, you know, two sides being told right now...all the other cabinet (ministers) have supported Trudeau along with many of us, including myself,” Sheehan said.

Sheehan said “I can tell you that I have had interaction with the PMO a thousand times as it relates to steel, that’s 122,000 jobs, they’re talking about 9,000 jobs in Quebec (regarding SNC-Lavalin)...I appreciate the PMO making jobs a priority because it’s been very helpful for this community.”

“At no point in time did they direct her (Wilson-Raybould) specifically with a decision (to step in and resolve the corruption and fraud case against SNC-Lavalin),” Sheehan maintained.

For his part, Trudeau, speaking in Toronto Friday, without issuing an apology, said the matter “has generated an important discussion” about how ministers, staff and officials conduct themselves.

The Wilson-Raybould affair has led to recent opinion polls suggesting the Conservatives under Andrew Scheer could win either a majority government or a razor-thin victory over the Liberals if a federal election were held now.

Sheehan did not directly address the question of if he feels the Liberals are in for a fight as the Oct. 21, 2019 federal election approaches.

“Jody is still a member of the Liberal caucus, Jane Philpott is still a member of the Liberal caucus and they have both indicated that they plan on running, or at least that they have had the nod on the nomination, they’ve had their opportunity to say their piece, Trudeau and Gerald Butts have said their piece, and there’s still going to be more chat about it, but when people look at it they’re starting to understand that there were definitely two sides to the story, two perspectives.”

“The Prime Minister was on and mentioned there were some lessons that had been learned, and moving forward we’re still going to be about jobs and protecting jobs, and we also need to take a look at it and address any other issues that are out there. I thought it was important that everybody had their say,” Sheehan said.


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Darren Taylor

About the Author: Darren Taylor

Darren Taylor is a news reporter and photographer in Sault Ste Marie. He regularly covers community events, political announcements and numerous board meetings. With a background in broadcast journalism, Darren has worked in the media since 1996.
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