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 exchange happened ahead of a Tuesday meeting by a House of Commons committee set to study the issue, which was flagged as a concern by the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
Service Canada says it has seen a big boost in demand for passport renewals, which has made for long lineups and longer waits for documents. The federal agency aims to process passports within 20 business days for mail-in applications, but right now the wait is averaging 26 days.
Emergency Health Services transported a 14-year-old female to hospital for treatment of serious, but non-life threatening injuries. The second youth involved, a 17-year-old male, was arrested by police and later released to his legal guardian at the scene.
The detailed itinerary released today outlines a packed schedule filled with military ceremonies, meetings with Indigenous communities and stops at local businesses.
A small backyard poultry flock in Kelowna, B.C., has tested positive for avian flu, the second known outbreak of the disease among flocks in British Columbia. The highly infectious H5N1 strain of the illness was confirmed earlier this month on an Enderby farm in the North Okanagan.
The premier did not stay for an interview, but later, while in the chamber of the legislature, he jokingly warned other politicians that the media was back in the building looking for stories.
