NDP leader Jagmeet Singh says that determining which members of his caucus knew about an allegedly inappropriate sexual encounter between a female MP and a military veteran — and when they knew about it — is not a top priority for him.
Singh spoke with reporters in person on Wednesday for the first time since accusations of impropriety were levelled against Quebec MP Christine Moore.
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Moore is alleged to have had a brief liaison with an injured veteran, Glen Kirkland, in June 2013, following his appearance before a parliamentary committee. Kirkland went public on Tuesday with his version of events, suggesting that while the sexual encounter was consensual, Moore abused her position of power “to get what she wanted.”
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The story had reportedly been floating around Parliament Hill for years, however, and was once mentioned in satirical publication Frank Magazine. On Wednesday, Singh was asked why nobody ever told him about it.
“I can’t answer that question because I don’t know what was known, who knew it, or what they did or didn’t do with it,” Singh said, adding that he’s not particularly interested in the answers to those questions.
“That is not something that’s a priority right now. My priority now is to launch the investigation and to ensure that the investigation is fair and independent.”
Singh reiterated that neither he nor his leadership team knew anything about Moore and Kirkland’s encounter before Monday night, when his office was contacted by a reporter with the CBC.
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Singh also said he doesn’t know enough about military culture to form an opinion about whether there was a power imbalance between Moore and Kirkland, as the veteran alleges.
“I don’t know enough about that to speak about that,”he said. “I can speak about an employee and an employer relationship, that’s a very clear example of a power imbalance … and it’s something we should keep in our minds.”
Moore, meanwhile, has seemingly decided to speak on the record about her side of the story. She told The Globe and Mail on Wednesday that her version of events is “totally” different from Kirkland’s, but did not go into detail. Her office has not responded to a request for comment from Global News.
“You will find out that there is some stuff that [does] not stick with his story,” Moore told the newspaper.
Moore, 34, issued a brief statement on Tuesday saying she would respect the investigative process after being temporarily suspended from her caucus duties.
Singh has not yet announced the name of the third-party investigator who will look into the matter.
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