Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s involvement in the SNC-Lavalin scandal harmed Canada’s global corruption ranking.
According to Blacklock’s Reporter, Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion pointed out the negative effect the controversy had on Canada’s international reputation.
“Gaining and retaining public trust remains an ongoing challenge for institutions in Canada,” said Dion in this year’s report on the Conflict Of Interest Act.
“This is evidenced by data published by credible international organizations that provide a broad indication of levels of public trust.”
Dion cited the Corruption Perceptions Index which is overseen by Transparency International. In the index, Canada fell from 9th to 12th place in the category of “perceived levels of public sector corruption.”
In 2019, Dion found the prime minister guilty of breaking ethics laws when he pressured former Justice Minister and Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould to intervene in the corruption trial of SNC-Lavalin.
In his revealing Trudeau II report, Dion concluded that Trudeau acted improperly.
“I found that Mr. Trudeau used his position of authority over Ms. Wilson‑Raybould to seek to influence, both directly and indirectly, her decision on whether she should overrule the Director of Public Prosecutions’ decision not to invite SNC-Lavalin to enter into negotiations towards a remediation agreement,” wrote Dion in his report.
SNC-Lavalin’s reputation also suffered nationally after the debacle.
In the 2020 Proof CanTrust Index poll, SNC-Lavalin ranked among the least trusted Canadian brands with only 16% of Canadians saying they trusted the company to do the right thing.
Last year, former SNC-Lavalin Vice President Sami Bebawi was found guilty on several corruption charges related to the company’s past dealings in Libya.
Bebawi was sentenced to 8 years and six months in prison as a result of his criminal convictions.
