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.
Speaking at a news conference where he was announcing mandatory vaccine rules for federal public servants as well as train and plane passengers, Trudeau said he was “stunned and dismayed” at recent revelations about Maj.-Gen. Peter Dawe.
The low rates have been a key economic rationale for why the government can afford the elevated spending and deep deficits needed to put a financial floor under businesses and workers impacted by COVID-19.
Dr. Katharine Smart says there's a feeling of hopelessness among health-care workers in the country that their governments are not listening to them as they try to manage the pandemic and feel there's no end in sight.
Isobel Mackenzie's figures come from a report released today that recommends expanding paid sick-leave provisions for staff, hiring more registered nurses, eliminating shared rooms and increasing the scope and frequency of COVID-19 testing.
The Ministry of Transportation says in a written statement that beginning next Monday, anyone applying for a B.C. Class 1 driver's licence must successfully complete the training program before attempting a road test.
NDP national director Anne McGrath has written to Canada's elections commissioner, Yves Côté, calling for an investigation into whether election officials in a number of ridings failed to follow correct procedures, denying citizens the right to cast their vote on Sept. 20.
