Floor-crossing MP praised Trudeau government in weeks before departure

Leona Alleslev heaped public and private praise on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his senior ministers in the weeks before she started a secret process to defect to the opposition Conservatives, according to an email and an audio recording obtained by CBC News.

On July 11 when Alleslev was part of the Canadian delegation at the NATO summit in Brussels the MP for Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill sent a emotional email to Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland.

Leona Alleslev praises Trudeau last July

6 years ago

Duration 1:31

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke in Alleslev's riding on July 20 after his visit to the NATO Summit in Brussels

"Want to tell you that the hug and kiss you gave me on the way out was just truly the best you made me cry!" Alleslev wrote in the email, supplied to CBCNews by a Liberal source.

"You and the PM and Harj (Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan) were truly awesome today. This is not only who we are as Canadians but also who we are as global citizens and that was on full display today."

She ended the note by thanking Freeland for "everything you do!"

Alleslev delivered a similar message just nine days later on July 20, when Trudeau headlined a fundraiser in her riding and the then-Liberal MP made a statement.

"The greatest thing about being a member of Parliament in this prime minister's governmentis that we are each and every one of us valued for the contribution that we bring to the team," Alleslev said, according to a recording of her remarks.

Just weeks later, in early August, Alleslev was sitting down with Conservative Leader Andrew Scheerat a Pearson airport hotel outside Toronto, discussing the terms of her defection from the Liberals.

Alleslev who cited what she called Trudeau's failures on foreign policy and defence as her motivation for crossing the floor also praised the prime minister's performance at the NATO summit.

"I decided about four years ago that I really was worried about what my country was becoming. And it was getting more difficult to represent this country, and so that's why I decided to become a Member of Parliament," Alleslev told a crowd of Liberal donors.

"And last week, when I was in Brussels, at the NATO summit, and the prime minister was there, you would have been truly amazed, proud, overcome with the power of the remarks that this prime minister made. Not to Canadians, but to members of Parliament from governments, from social organizations all over the world, and he set the example for what our NATO allies and what other countries can become.

Power Panel on floor-crossing MP's prior praise for Trudeau

6 years ago

Duration 9:30

Power Panel on floor-crossing MP's prior praise for Trudeau

"So I would like to thank this prime minister for creating the country that I am honoured to serve and defend, not only for what he is doing here at home, but for how he is representing us around the world."

In a statement issued this evening, Alleslevcalled the email a "very personal" message she sent to someone she still thinks of as "a friend."

"I was at an event in Brussels with Ministers Freeland and Sajjan, as well as the prime minister, and it was a good event," she wrote."However, one good event does not equal delivering the foundational change Canada needs at home and abroad. My decision to leave the government was based on the direction I feel Canada is headed due to a number of actions and policy decisions taken over the last three years."

Canada's high-profile floor crossers of the past

6 years ago

Duration 1:07

A P&P peek into some of the most shocking floor crossing moments in Canadian politics.

Still, Alleslev's earlier statements standin stark contrast to the public condemnation she gave when she blindsided the Liberals by announcing in the House of Commons Monday that she was bolting to the Conservative bench.

"I stand here today deeply concerned for the future of our country," she said on Monday. "On the world stage, Canada has yet to rise to the occasion. The world has changed and Canada must change with it. We do not have the luxury of time. We must recognize that foreign policy, trade, defence, and our economy all depend on each other and cannot be viewed separately."