Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland was repeatedly accused of not answering questions during Tuesday evening’s testimony as she appeared before a special joint committee of MPs and senators reviewing the government’s first-ever use of the powers contained in the federal Emergencies Act.
‘It’s to the point of almost being contemptible,’ NDP MP Matthew Green says of the Finance Minister’s appearance. NDP MP Matthew Green challenged Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Tuesday during a special joint committee on the invocation of the Emergencies Act about the answers she was providing, saying she had cited news articles and people spoken to as primary sources. He said they needed to know if the government had “facts that would meet the economic impacts of the occupation to be significant enough to meet the threshold of a threat to national security.”
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland refused to waive cabinet confidentiality when asked if the government will release documents relating to its decision to invoke the Emergencies Act.
Chrystia Freeland Won’t Confirm Waving Cabinet Confidence and Provide Committee Documents#EmergenciesAct pic.twitter.com/zX0iZZ2ygY
— Canadian Riley (@TiaRileyCanada) June 16, 2022
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland was asked if the government will waive cabinet confidence and solicitor client privilege in the documents ordered by this committee. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland responded “I think everyone here appreciates the importance of cabinet confidentiality.”