A number of Canadian parliamentarians are interrupting their summer break to gather in Ottawa today to discuss whether a parliamentary committee should look into allegations that a federal official pressured two former diplomats to co-ordinate with the Liberal government before commenting on Canada’s diplomatic row with China.
The Globe and Mail newspaper reported last week that former Canadian ambassador to China David Mulroney contacted by an official with Global Affairs Canada and told to clear any public comments on Canada’s China policy with the department beforehand.
The official reportedly cited the upcoming federal election in October and said they were passing on a request from the PMO.
Another former ambassador, Guy Saint-Jacques, who succeeded Mulroney as Ottawa’s envoy in Beijing and has been a regular commentator on the ongoing dispute with China, also said he had been contacted with a similar “clumsy” message.
The revelations have prompted Erin O’Toole, the Conservative vice-chair of the Commons committee on foreign affairs and international development, as well as Guy Caron, the New Democratic Party vice-chair, to make a formal request for the committee to meet in Ottawa and discuss the issue.
“We believe it is incumbent on the committee to study these matters and ensure that Canada’s non-partisan, public service is not being unduly exploited for political purposes,” O’Toole and Caron wrote in a letter last week.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters in Vancouver on Monday that his office had nothing to do with the phone calls to the former diplomats.
Global Affairs said it regretted the miscommunication with Mulroney. It also denied the department had been under instruction from the PMO to ask him to clear future comments with Ottawa.
With files from CBC News
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