The leader scrums that had been scheduled for after Thursday’s English-language debate were cancelled due to what sources were told were security concerns.
CTV News first reported the development while the debate was underway. Leaders’ Debates Commission executive director Michel Cormier later confirmed it, telling reporters the organizers don’t feel they “can actually guarantee a proper environment for this activity.”
Cormier did not elaborate further or answer any questions from journalists.
CTV News senior political correspondent Mike Le Couteur said there were Montreal police on scene and other increased security measures in place.
Following the commission’s decision, Le Couteur said he saw right-wing media personalities arguing with organizers.
Le Couteur told CTV’s Power Play host Vassy Kapelos a number of them were seemingly “trying to grandstand” in the media centre, insisting they had a right to ask questions of the politicians and calling the system undemocratic, despite concerns that those same outlets had monopolized the question-and-answer period after Wednesday’s French-language debate.
“What journalists do is they line up to wait for a question — one English, one French,” Le Couteur explained. “A number of those so-called reporters essentially tried to stack the deck and be there in line well ahead of the finish of the debate, so about 20 to 30 minutes ahead of it.”
There had been criticisms of the commission over the number of questions right-wing outlets were given during Wednesday night’s post-debate scrums.
In an interview earlier on Thursday, Cormier told Kapelos the debate-organizing body accredited the media sources to avoid a lawsuit.
“We lost (to Rebel News) twice in court,” Cormier told Kapelos ahead of the English-language debate. “We declined their accreditation request, both in 2019 and 2021, they went to court, and the court said, ‘You have no business in deciding what’s a journalist, you have to let them in.’”
“So, we had a back and forth through lawyers on this, and finally we decided that we couldn’t chance another defeat in court, which was just about certain because of the precedent,” Cormier also said.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh rescheduled and relocated his own scrum independently. Liberal Leader Mark Carney, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, and Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet have confirmed they will not be holding their own scrums Thursday night.
With files from CTV News supervising producer Stephanie Ha
