Evidence of meeting #24 for Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was program.

A video is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Marc Kielburger  Founder, WE Charity
Clerk of the Committee  Ms. Miriam Burke
Craig Kielburger  Founder, WE Charity

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

No, it's not a private matter, actually. This is someone you claim is writing correspondence to the Prime Minister's Office on your behalf. We want to confirm that this person actually exists, because the correspondence that has your name on it contradicts the testimony that you've given directly. You will need to provide it to prove that you in fact actually are telling the truth here, because it's very hard to believe.

You said you sent a hundred different e-mails thanking people for their role in setting up the Canada student service grant. Is that what you said?

5:30 p.m.

Founder, WE Charity

Marc Kielburger

Mr. Poilievre, does anybody in your office write your correspondence?

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

I'm asking.... The question was a hundred people, yes or no? Is that how many people you thanked for setting up your Canada student service grant?

5:30 p.m.

Founder, WE Charity

Craig Kielburger

Do you write all your own correspondence, sir? You don't have an assistant who helps you with any of it?

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

I can tell you that I didn't send Ben Chin an e-mail thanking him for a program that I didn't think he set up, so back to you. Your smirking and evading might be fun now; it's not going to be fun when we're investigating you for contempt of Parliament.

Did you actually send a hundred different thank-yous to members of the government for their role in helping set up the Canada student service grant? That's the question, and it's a yes or no.

5:30 p.m.

Founder, WE Charity

Craig Kielburger

No, because we sent a hundred messages to different individuals across a variety of industries that I was asking to link with me on LinkedIn and each got a personalized two-line “would you link with me?” It was a personalized two-line message to each individual prepared by my EA that came from a hundred lists. We had hundreds of names. The EA short-listed it because I asked her to build my LinkedIn profile.

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

Okay. You just randomly somehow or another, in the middle of setting up this program, decided to add Ben Chin, whom you claim you hadn't spoken to in two years, to a list of people to randomly thank about creating a program that you thought he had no role in creating.

5:30 p.m.

Founder, WE Charity

Craig Kielburger

It was one of a hundred names that were contacted that day to [Technical difficulty—Editor] LinkedIn. That's the simple fact.

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

Next question: How much did you pay for Sophie Trudeau's attendance at the London WE event in March of 2020? How much?

5:30 p.m.

Founder, WE Charity

Craig Kielburger

Just to be clear, we've previously given all the—

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

No, you haven't, actually. No, sorry. To be clear, again you're giving false testimony. You have not given, sir, the itemized amounts for that event. How much?

5:30 p.m.

Founder, WE Charity

Craig Kielburger

[Technical difficulty—Editor]

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

Patricia Lattanzio Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC

Mr. Chairman?

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Chris Warkentin

Do I see a point of order?

Ms. Lattanzio.

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

Patricia Lattanzio Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC

Yes.

Mr. Chairman, I'm sorry to interject, but I think that we're supposed to be working in collaboration to try to get the information, as much information as we possibly can—

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Chris Warkentin

Ms. Lattanzio, is there a point of order?

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

Patricia Lattanzio Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC

Yes, there is.

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Chris Warkentin

Okay, I'll hear your point of order.

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

Patricia Lattanzio Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC

We ask a question, and then we answer a question, or we assume that we know the answer to the question. I defer to you, Mr. Chairman, and ask you whether this is part of decorum. I need for you to rule on the way we're carrying ourselves in this committee today.

Thank you.

I need for you to rule on that.

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Chris Warkentin

I rule in support of.... I believe that we are undertaking...according to the rules.

Thank you.

Mr. Poilievre, we'll turn to you to finish off the questions.

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

Han Dong Liberal Don Valley North, ON

Mr. Chair, I have a point of order.

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Chris Warkentin

On a point of order, Mr. Dong.

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

Han Dong Liberal Don Valley North, ON

Could you clarify? Is this round a five-minute round or a two-and-a-half-minute round? Your answer to—

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Chris Warkentin

This is a five-minute round. We will get to you next. You are splitting your time.

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

Han Dong Liberal Don Valley North, ON

All right.