Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you both for joining us today.
The committee heard last week from the current Attorney General, the deputy attorney general and the Clerk of the Privy Council. All three said that discussions between the Prime Minister, the PMO and the Attorney General and office are appropriate when discussing a matter like remediation agreements and particularly as it relates to the issue of SNC-Lavalin.
The Attorney General said that the Attorney General is “not an island. These are not easy decisions that face any Attorney General, and his or her ability to get the answer right on behalf of all Canadians is only improved through discussion and debate with the rest of cabinet....”
The Clerk of the Privy Council, who has served as a non-partisan public servant in Canada for decades, said, “I can tell you with complete assurance that my view of those conversations is that they were within the boundaries of what's lawful and appropriate.”
The deputy attorney general, Madame Drouin, who's also a non-partisan public servant, gave an example from the U.K., the same one Professor Condon alluded to. That's the BAE case. Madame Drouin, in referring to that U.K. case, said, “...the Prime Minister, saying that if the Attorney General continued the investigation and the prosecution, blood could be on the street. Finally, the director decided to stop the investigation and not to lay charges.” She stated that the case was the subject of a judicial review. She went on to say, “The House of Lords did say that this very difficult conversation didn't break the rule of law. That, I think, really illustrates how serious the conversation can be.”
Madame Drouin was alluding to the public safety considerations.
This question is for both of you. Do you share the assessment that it is appropriate for these kinds of difficult discussions between the Attorney General, the Prime Minister and offices about the potential use of, in this case, a remediation agreement?