Canada’s embattled governor general resigns amid bullying, harassment allegations

In an announcement, Payette, 57, apologized for “tensions” that she mentioned had arisen “over the past few months” at Rideau Hall, the official residence of the governor general, however not explicitly for the allegations that prompted the overview.

“I am a strong believer in the principles of natural justice, due process and the rule of law, and that these principles apply to all equally,” she mentioned. “Notwithstanding, in respect for the integrity of my viceregal Office and for the good of our country … I have come to the conclusion that a new governor general should be appointed.”

The report has not been made public. Payette famous that no “formal complaints” or “official grievances” have been made throughout her tenure.

“We all experience things differently,” she mentioned, “but we should always strive to do better, and be attentive to one another’s perceptions.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accepted Payette’s resignation.

“Every employee in the government of Canada has the right to work in a safe and healthy environment, and we will always take this very seriously,” he mentioned in an announcement. “Today’s announcement provides an opportunity for new leadership at Rideau Hall to address the workplace concerns raised by employees during the review.

Trudeau said Richard Wagner, the chief justice of Canada, would perform the duties of the governor general until he recommends a successor.

The Privy Council Office, a public service department that supports the government and cabinet, ordered the investigation last year after the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported that Payette led a workplace that was a “house of horrors,” replete with harassment and bullying.

The CBC enumerated allegations from greater than a dozen nameless present and former staffers. They included claims that Payette verbally abused staffers, diminished them to tears, dismissed their work harshly in an effort to humiliate them and was vulnerable to disquieting outbursts.

Turnover was excessive. The CBC mentioned Payette would quiz her staff on the planets within the photo voltaic system to impress a “gotcha moment.” Assunta di Lorenzo, Payette’s secretary and longtime buddy, additionally resigned.

Governors general are appointed by the queen, typically to five-year phrases, on the recommendation of the Canadian prime minister, though the queen is unlikely in observe to gripe a couple of prime minister’s choice. Prime ministers might not hearth them. To oust a controversial governor general, a major minister must ask Buckingham Palace to take away the individual.

Analysts mentioned they consider that is the primary time a governor general in Canada has resigned whereas slowed down in controversy.

The governor general serves as commander in chief of Canada; represents the nation at residence and overseas; reads the Speech from the Throne, which outlines the federal government’s agenda for a brand new session of Parliament; and grants royal assent to payments in order that they change into regulation.

The governor general additionally decides whether or not to approve a major minister’s request to dissolve Parliament, which triggers a brand new election, or to droop Parliament. That means she or he can play a key function in a constitutional disaster.

Dominic LeBlanc, the minister of intergovernmental affairs, mentioned in an interview on CTV News that Trudeau and Payette had mentioned the report earlier than her resignation.

Trudeau introduced Payette’s appointment in 2017, describing her on the time as a “truly exceptional Canadian” who would function a “trailblazer and an inspiration for all of us.”

A former chief astronaut of the Canadian Space Agency, she flew on two house shuttle missions and was the primary Canadian to board the International Space Station. An engineer by coaching, with levels from the University of Toronto and McGill University, the Montreal native speaks a half-dozen languages and has carried out within the choir of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra.

But her tenure as governor general was turbulent, upsetting troublesome questions for Trudeau about whether or not he and his workplace had exercised due diligence in vetting her for the job.

Media studies painted a portrait of a personal lady who chafed at custom and being within the public eye. She clashed along with her safety crew and tried to slide away. She lengthy refused to maneuver into the official residence in Ottawa, even after a number of hundred thousand {dollars} have been spent on renovations.

When the allegations of office harassment emerged, Trudeau got here to Payette’s protection, lauding her as an “excellent” governor general.

When the suggestion emerged final 12 months that Prince Harry, who had stepped again from his function as a senior royal and relocated to North America, could become the next governor general, the prime minister’s workplace requested “holding lines” from the Department of Canadian Heritage.

“They have asked for lines expressing confidence in the current GG,” a staffer within the Heritage Department’s media relations workplace wrote to colleagues within the Privy Council Office, in line with emails obtained by The Washington Post by way of a public data request. “We are definitely not in a position to comment on this.”

The request for the strains was later dropped, a subsequent e mail indicated.

On Thursday afternoon, Payette hosted a recorded dialog on Facebook with Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin, the navy officer in control of the nationwide vaccine rollout, and Gary Kobinger, a Canadian microbiologist.

She ended the dialog by saying that she could be again subsequent week to delve into one other urgent difficulty: What impact “months and months of confinement and distancing and teleworking and isolation in many cases has on the well-being of people.”