Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has named his special rapporteur to oversee a suite of foreign interference probes: former governor general David Johnston.
The Prime Minister’s Office says Johnston was appointed after consultations with all parties in the House of Commons.
He will have a “wide mandate” to look into allegations of interference in the past two elections and make recommendations to the government, the PMO said in a statement.
Johnston served as governor general from 2010 to 2017 and currently serves as the Leaders’ Debates Commissioner, which he will step down from to take on the rapporteur role.
Trudeau announced last week he would name an “eminent Canadian” to the independent role amid growing pressure from opposition parties to call a public inquiry into the allegations and the broader issue of how Canada counters foreign interference.
Whether an inquiry should be called will be one of the questions Johnston will have to decide, Trudeau said.
More to come…
