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.
The survey found vaccinated people consider the unvaccinated as irresponsible and selfish, a view contested by those who are not immunized. Some members of the latter group have been staging demonstrations outside hospitals and schools in recent weeks to protest vaccine passports and other public health measures.
The House of Commons unanimously supported legislation in June to make Sept. 30, also known as Orange Shirt Day, a federally recognized holiday to mark the history of and intergenerational trauma caused by residential schools. The statutory holiday applies to all federal employees and workers in federally regulated workplaces.
Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig were detained in December 2019, days after Huawei’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, was arrested in Canada at the request of U.S. authorities.
Paul – who's had to deal with much infighting within Green ranks – announced her resignation in Toronto on Monday morning, a week after the federal election that saw her party's share of the popular vote drop significantly.
Commissioners are considering amendments that include a fine of $500 for anyone feeding wild animals ranging from pigeons, crows and geese to squirrels, raccoons and coyotes.
The vaccine card, under orders from provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry, is required at most restaurants and indoor events to help ensure businesses can stay open and people can feel safe in these settings.
