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OTTAWA — Gerald Butts, Justin Trudeau’s principal secretary and long-time friend, has resigned amid allegations that the Prime Minister’s Office interfered to prevent a criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin.

In a statement, Butts unequivocally denies the accusation that he or anyone else in the office improperly pressured former attorney general Jody Wilson-Raybould to help the Montreal engineering giant avoid a criminal case on corruption and bribery charges related to government contracts in Libya.

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Nevertheless, Butts says the allegation is distracting from the “vital work” Trudeau is doing so it’s in the best interests of the Prime Minister’s Office for him to step aside.

“I categorically deny the accusation that I or anyone else in his office pressured Ms. Wilson-Raybould … At all times, I and those around me acted with integrity and singular focus on the best interests of all Canadians,” he says.

“Any accusation that I or the staff put pressure on the attorney general is simply not true … But the fact is that this accusation exists. It cannot and should not take one moment away from the vital work the prime minister and his office is doing for all Canadians.

“My reputation is my responsibility and that is for me to defend. It is in the best interests of the office and its important work for me to step away.”