The extremely rare reprimand, requested as part of an opposition motion, comes after PHAC has declined for weeks to provide documents to a parliamentary committee that might explain why two scientists were fired from Canada’s highest-security infectious disease lab earlier this year.
Stewart on Friday said he made the decision to withhold documents on the advice of officials in the Justice Department. He said he has not spoken with anyone in the office of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the matter.
He said the ruling that his department was in contempt of Parliament does not absolve him of the need to adhere to the Privacy Act and other laws, saying “that’s been the challenge in this file.”
Opposition members on the heath committee blasted Stewart for withholding the documents, citing past rulings that have found the right of Parliament to compel documents “supersedes statutory obligations.”
No comments:
Post a Comment