Green Party applies for judicial review after being kicked out of leaders’ debates [Video]

The fallout from last week’s leaders’ debates continues, with a filing in Federal Court from the Green Party saying the independent commission’s decision to exclude it from the debates was unfair and lacked transparency.

The party filed an application for a judicial review Thursday evening, saying the last-minute decision violated principles of procedural fairness.

The filing alleges that “at no time did the [Green Party of Canada] intentionally withdraw any of its candidates,” that it was given little time to explain itself on the eve of the debate and that it was following the rules outlined by the commission.

The document recounts how the commission informed the party in the early morning of April 16, the day of the French-language debate, that it would not be allowed to participate in that debate and the English-language one the following night. It says CBC/Radio-Canada, which was hosting the debates, was informed of …