Information & Ethics Committee on Sept. 19th, 2024

Evidence of meeting #127 for Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was business.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

Compliance of a Minister to the Conflict of Interest Act

Committee Business

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Alexandra Savoie Analyst

4:35 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative John Brassard

Mr. Barrett—

4:35 p.m.

An hon. member

Come on, Chair. That's absolutely absurd, Chair.

4:35 p.m.

Liberal

Iqra Khalid Liberal Mississauga—Erin Mills, ON

It's Standing Order 18.

4:35 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative John Brassard

Mr. Barrett, I'm going to suggest that this was not appropriate.

I'm going to go to Mr. Brock.

Go ahead.

4:35 p.m.

Conservative

Larry Brock Conservative Brantford—Brant, ON

Minister, despite your best efforts, this story is not going away anytime soon. The cloud of suspicion will hang over you until the next election, after which time you'll be looking for a new job.

Let's take a look at the facts.

Ghaoui Group knew of only one Randy, and that Randy was a minister of the Canadian government. That's yourself. At all material times prior to your election, you were in a fifty-fifty partnership with Anderson. During your time with the company with Mr. Anderson, you in fact were the only person named Randy.

Mr. Anderson, whom you're now deeply disappointed about, although you didn't say that when you first testified, blatantly lied to the committee about lying to Canadians and lying to the press that there was some other Randy. He also promised this committee to provide us with details as to who the other Randy is, but—surprise, Minister—he couldn't because by doing so, he would identify you.

Then we now find out that on September 6 you were in a text communication with Anderson and in a phone call with Anderson, despite you assuring us at committee the first time that you've had no communication with Mr. Anderson. It's highly suspicious, Mr. Boissonnault.

Furthermore, you know full well that for any minister to engage in a management capacity or an operational capacity is indeed an operational issue that is banned by the ethics laws. You could have had a staffer reach out to Anderson. You could have simply told the courier company, “I have nothing to do with the company. Deal with Anderson. Go pound salt; it's not my responsibility.” Instead you chose to take matters into your own hands to deal directly with Mr. Anderson. Those are the incontrovertible facts.

Now you're also relying upon the fact that you exercised your due diligence with this committee and your due diligence with the Ethics Commissioner. I asked you specifically to provide us with details, including all your text messages on all your devices. You failed to do that, Minister. You gave this committee only one set of records pertaining to one device. I was led to believe that you told the Ethics Commissioner you had two devices.

Again, the Ethics Commissioner is not an investigator. He doesn't have investigative powers like law enforcement. He can't obtain production orders on service providers to verify what you are saying. The Ethics Commissioner has to take it on good faith that you're being honest. I have some serious reservations about your honesty, as do Canadians.

Will you provide this committee with all text records on all your devices and tell us how many devices you had in your possession in the fall of 2022?