Email saying Tom Clark approved purchase of $9M apartment was wrong, GAC official tells MPs

An internal Global Affairs Canada email that suggested Canada's consul general in New York was directly involved in the purchase of a $9 million luxury apartment in the city was mistaken, a committee of MPs was told Thursday.

Emily Nicholson, a Global Affairs Canada (GAC) official, told MPs she wrote the June 17 email for the minister's office "primarily" to quickly summarize the process of selling the old official residence for the consul general, not the process of buying the new one.

That initial summary stated that consulate staff and Consul General Tom Clark were "instrumental throughout this process" and that Clark himself had provided "the greenlight for the selection of the new residence." Nicholson said her summary was mistaken and had confused several details.

"The term 'greenlight' was meant as a thumbs-up," Nicholson said. "It was just intended to communicate that the consul general was aware of and prepared to deal with the hassle of moving part way through his assignment."

Nicholson said she was summarizing information she was given by other GAC officials and she meant to say that while  consulate staff were instrumental, Clark was only aware of the process. 

"In hindsight, more precise language could have been used to prevent any misunderstanding. That clarification was provided on July 25," she said.

Since the purchase of the apartment became public in July, it has been criticized by Conservative MPs as overly lavish in light of the cost of living challenges facing Canadians.

Conservative MPs have repeatedly claimed the purchase was made to provide a perk to Clark — a veteran broadcaster the Conservatives have called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's "media buddy" — and that he was involved in the selection of the new residence.

GAC officials previously told the committee Clark was not involved in the purchase or sale of the apartment. They also said the five bedroom apartment at 550 Park Avenue that had served as the official residence since 1961 had to be sold because it was no longer suitable.

Nicholson said Thursday that her initial email was drafted after a June 14 request from Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly's office. Nicholson said her initial email was only intended to provide a "quick" summary. She told MPs that after it was sent, the minister's office requested a more detailed summary of the process, which she delivered on July 25.

That summary, also written by Nicholson, contained a different description of Clark's role. It said he "did not direct this process" and that he was not "part of the selection or approval process for the overall process or the property purchase."

Opposition MPs on the committee did not accept Nicholson's version of events and suggested her second memo was an attempt at a cover-up.

Conservative MP Michael Barrett suggested the timing of the second memo, one day after the committee voted to conduct hearings on the purchase of the apartment, was suspicious. 

"You'll have to elaborate, ma'am. The timeline is beyond curious," Barrett said.

Nicholson said that the process of drafting the July 25 memo had been underway for some time and was not launched in response to the committee's vote. 

When asked how long she spent drafting that second memo, or when the minister's office asked for it, she could not provide exact dates but promised to get that information for the committee.

Bloc MP Julie Vignola told Nicholson that she had listened to her explanations and had been left with the impression that she is "talking to someone who is covering for someone else, who is covering someone else's mistake."

"In all sincerity, I hope it's not the case," she added. "If it is the case, I find it sincerely unfortunate, but I need to ask you the question: are you covering for someone?"

Nicholson said she wasn't and that she misstated information on her initial email.

NDP MP Taylor Bachrach told Nicholson that she was delivering "a frustrating bit of testimony" and that her "somewhat unbelievable" words appeared to be "an attempt to construct a story."

"To be honest, Ms. Nicholson, the things that you are saying are tough to believe," Bachrach said. "What you're saying is that you accidentally mis-characterized something that seems to be characterized in a very specific way."

Conservative MP Stephanie Kusie said it is "incredibly concerning that it seems you've lied about changing this email, changing the terminology within the email. It just seems very clear that you're not being truthful with the committee today."

Nicholson defended herself, saying that Clark was never involved in the purchase of the new residence and she had simply muddled her language.

She also said that Clark did not even see the new apartment until after the seller had accepted GAC's offer to buy it.