Liberal MP Jane Philpott spoke Friday at an International Women’s Day event hosted by Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson and Councillor Theresa Kavanagh at Ottawa City Hall.
It was her first public remarks since she quit her post as Treasury Board President, saying she’d lost confidence in the government’s handling of the SNC-Lavalin affair.
During the speech, she said she would not be commenting about the politics of the week — and would only speak about the topic at hand: gender balance in the world.
She did briefly mention women in politics, quoting Debbie Walsh, the director of the Center for American Women in Politics, saying “Women run to do something, men run to be somebody.”
WATCH: Philpott quotes Debbie Walsh: ‘Women run to do something, men run to be somebody’
Philpott said that when both women and men have seats at the table, there can be some upheavel. Women, in general, have different motivations that men, she said in French. Women have a different vision and make different decisions.
She also praised Trudeau for his gender-balanced cabinet, saying he has set a bar that future cabinet, councils and advisory boards will be measured against.
READ MORE: What it means to be a woman in 2019 on International Women’s Day
In a press conference Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admitted there was an “erosion of trust” between his office and the former-attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould.
She said there was pressure from the PMO to move the prosecution of the Montreal-based engineering firm for corruption and bribery charges into remediation. PMO staffers denied there was pressure, but say they wanted Wilson-Raybould to consider a second opinion.
READ MORE: Charges against SNC-Lavalin explained — and how the PMO allegedly got involved
Trudeau is travelling to Iqaluit to apologize for Ottawa’s treatment of Inuit affected by a tuberculosis outbreak in the 1940s to 1960s — when the government transferred sick patients south for treatment, but some of them died and were buried without their families ever knowing their fate.
The apology was supposed to take place Thursday, but a blizzard made it unable for a plane to land in Nunavut and he was diverted to Labrador.
Trudeau is expected to face questions on the SNC-Lavalin affair, and respond to accusations from two Western premiers that he has too much focus on Quebec, and not enough on other regions.
Premiers Scott Moe and Rachel Notley of Saskatchewan and Alberta, respectively, have criticized Trudeau.
Notley said she understands the concern over potential job losses stemming from the political scandal swirling around the Quebec-based company, but she says Alberta’s struggle to get its oil to market has a far greater impact on jobs than SNC-Lavalin does.
She adds farmers need Trudeau’s attention, too, especially since China has started blocking import shipments of Canadian canola.
WATCH: Alberta canola producers worried about export slowdown to China
— with files from Global’s Beatrice Britniffthe Canadian Press