Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be called to testify at hearings into the government’s decision to invoke the Emergencies Act to end anti-warrant protests earlier this year.
The Emergency Public Order Commission, headed by former Ontario Superior Court Justice Paul Rouleau, is due to begin hearings next week, with a mandate to assess the use of the law by the government for the first time since it came into force in 1988. .
Although the preliminary list of about 60 witnesses prepared by commission lawyers has not yet been made public, CTV News has learned that it includes eight ministers, including Trudeau.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino and Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland are also among those also expected to be called to testify.
Trudeau invoked the law on Feb. 14 to end protests against COVID-19 measures that occupied Ottawa and blocked border crossings in Alberta and at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ont. He was revoked nine days later after police broke up the protests.
The government argued that the police needed additional tools, including the ability to freeze convoy supporters’ bank accounts, to end the protests. But critics, including the Conservative opposition, said the decision was unnecessary and an unwarranted intrusion on the Charter rights of Canadians.
The commission has the power to subpoena to compel witnesses, but government officials are expected to appear voluntarily. The Prime Minister’s Office told CTV News that Trudeau expected to be asked to testify and “welcomes” the opportunity.
The proposed witness list also includes several leaders of the so-called Freedom Convoy, some of whom currently face criminal charges, as well as law enforcement officials from the RCMP, Ottawa Police Service and the Ontario Provincial Police.
Keith Wilson, one of the attorneys who represented convoy leader Tamara Lich, says his clients are gathering documents to present to the commission. Wilson says he has texts and phone records that show organizers had “ratified an agreement” to move the trucks out of downtown Ottawa before the Emergencies Act was invoked.
Wilson says his clients have not yet been scheduled to testify but have been asked to be ready to testify as early as next Tuesday. Hearings are scheduled for October 13 to November 24, but could be extended.
There are 39 people and organizations who have standing at the inquiry, but it’s up to the commission’s lawyers to choose who they call to testify. Those with standing may have the opportunity to cross-examine witnesses.
The Commission said it would not provide the full list of witnesses until next week.
“The Commission has provided a preliminary list of witnesses to the parties who have standing,” spokesman Michael Tansey said in an email. “The list is not definitive and has been provided to the Parties on a confidential basis.”
It is unusual, although not unprecedented, for prime ministers to testify at public inquiries. In 2005, then-Prime Minister Paul Martin appeared before the Gomery Commission to investigate allegations of corruption in the Liberal government’s sponsorship and advertising programs.
Martin’s predecessor, former prime minister Jean Chrétien, also testified at the Gomery hearings. The commission’s finding that Chrétien and his chief of staff bore some responsibility for the wasteful spending was later overturned by the Federal Court of Canada.