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Early in the election campaign, Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney met with a police group that is registered to lobby him, despite a convention that requires ministers to postpone non-urgent business that could be seen as partisan until after the vote.

Blaney attended the annual conference of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police in Quebec City on Aug. 19, nearly three weeks after the election began.

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During the writ period, the federal government is supposed to operate under what’s known as the “caretaker convention,” with ministers deferring work to departmental officials where possible and avoiding any government business that might be interpreted as political in nature.

The CACP, however, is registered to lobby Blaney and other government officials in support of Bill C-51, the anti-terrorism legislation; firearms policy; counter-terrorism; and other issues.

The group says it wasn’t seeking any special considerations from Blaney at the meeting in Quebec.