Ottawa, June 24 (IANS) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has denied meddling in an investigation into the 2020 mass shooting, the worst the country's history.
Brenda Lucki, head of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), has been accused of pressuring local officers to help advance Trudeau's gun control plans, the BBC quoted the Halifax Examiner as saying, which was the first to report on the development.
According to the Halifax Examiner, the accusation stemmed from notes made by a local RCMP officer, released as part of a public investigation into the mass shooting on April 18-19, 2020, during which a gunman posing as a police officer killed 22 people in Nova Scotia.
The suspect died in a stand-off with police.
Addressing reporters on Thursday, Trudeau said that his government "did not put any undo influence or pressure" on police.
"It is extremely important to highlight that it is only the RCMP, it is only police that determine what and when to release information," the BBC quoted the Prime Minister as saying.
Denying the accusations, Commissioner Lucki said in a statement released on Tuesday that information sharing between the federal government and police is normal during a high-profile event such as a mass shooting.
The RCMP chief however acknowledged that she "should have been more sensitive" in her approach.
Canada's opposition Conservative Party has called for a debate in the House of Commons, and a parliamentary committee voted on Thursday to hold a hearing into the matter.
In the wake of the deadliest rampage in Canadian history, Prime Minister Trudeau in May 2020 announced an immediate ban on the sale, transportation, importation, or use of some 1,500 makes and models of "military-grade assault-style" weapons.
Evidence gathered indicated that the Vancouver residence was being rented for the purpose of setting up and operating an alleged illegal gaming establishment.
The federal government has begun accepting applications from Ukrainians and their families fleeing Russian aggression who want to come to Canada while they decide their next steps. The program to allow an unlimited number of Ukrainians to come to Canada was first announced two weeks ago.
Canada's first Indigenous Governor General, within months of being appointed to the role, requested government officials outline what departments were doing to allow First Nations to move away from the Indian Act. Mary Simon, an Inuk leader, diplomat and negotiator, was sworn in last July as the country's 30th Governor General.
The Supreme Court of Canada will not hear an appeal from the federal government trying to stop a class action against the RCMP over bullying and harassment. Last fall the Federal Court of Appeal upheld a judge's order certifying the class action.
The change is being made at the tail end of the Omicron wave in Canada, as new reported cases of COVID-19 have declined since mid-January. Duclos said the change is possible because of Canada's high vaccination rates and fewer cases of the virus being detected at the border.
The World Health Organization says it expects to reject the COVID-19 vaccine candidate from Canada's Medicago because of the company's ties to big tobacco. The two-dose Medicago Covifenz vaccine was authorized in Canada last month for adults between 18 and 64 years old.
