PEIMembers of a legislative standing committee have learned that a long sought-after report from the Island Regulatory Appeals Commission outlining the details of a 2018 investigation into the land holdings of Buddhist groups in eastern P.E.I. was never completed. Details provided by commission in response to subpoena issued by MLAsBrittany Spencer · CBC News · Posted: Oct 09, 2025 3:35 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours agoThe Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission says a final report on the 2018 investigation into P.E.I. land holdings was never prepared by the investigating officers and the commission didn’t hold a hearing on the matter. (Aaron Adetuyi/CBC)Members of a legislative standing committee have learned that a long sought-after report from the Island Regulatory Appeals Commission outlining the details of a 2018 investigation into the land holdings of Buddhist groups in eastern P.E.I. was never completed. The standing committee reviewed a letter from IRAC chair and CEO Pamela Williams during an in-camera meeting on Thursday. The letter came in response to the committee’s subpoena for a report outlining the details of an IRAC investigation into various land concerns, including in relation to the Great Wisdom Buddhist Institute (GWBI) and the Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute Society (GEBIS) — both of which have significant land holdings in eastern P.E.I.IRAC had until Oct. 8 to respond.According to IRAC’s letter, an investigation began in 2016 and two of the regulator’s commissioners were appointed to be investigating officers on the matter. It goes on to say the investigators retained legal counsel and a consultant was hired. In 2017, the consultant prepared an “initial” and “supplementary” report, and provided those reports to the investigating officers “on a privileged basis.” The letter said “neither of the consultant’s reports were provided to the parties being investigated.” In the letter, Williams wrote that there was no report prepared by the investigating officers and the commission didn’t hold a hearing on the matter. Earlier this year, a legislative standing committee and the Coalition for the Protection of P.E.I. Lands called on former land minister Steven Myers to order IRAC to conduct a new investigation into the Buddhist groups’ land holdings in the province. (Ken Linton/CBC)Williams goes on to write that “there was no ‘investigative report’ dated 2018 or otherwise prepared by the Investigating Officers.” “The long and the short of it is that there was no final report prepared by IRAC further to that investigation,” said P.E.I. Green Party Leader Matt MacFarlane, who’s a member of the standing committee. He said the committee passed a motion to release IRAC’s letter to the public. MacFarlane said he’s glad to have some answers after yearslong calls for the report to be released. But he said this latest news only creates more questions about what happened and why time and resources were spent to complete an investigation.“There was work done, there was an investigation done. I guess the question now becomes, why was there no final report prepared given the work that was done?” MacFarlane said. New investigation underway Earlier this year, a legislative standing committee and the Coalition for the Protection of P.E.I. Lands called on former land minister Steven Myers to order a new investigation into the Buddhist groups’ land holdings in the province.Myers officially made that order back in February, while the standing committee continued to wait for the results of the 2018 investigation to be released.P.E.I. Green Party Leader Matt MacFarlane says he’s now going to go back to his caucus to discuss how to move forward after learning that the 2018 IRAC land report doesn’t exist. (Jane Robertson/CBC)“As we know, the issue has not gone away, we have a new investigation underway that former minister Myers had commenced back in February,” MacFarlane told CBC News. “I think that’s where Islanders are going to want to go next. Let’s make sure that investigation actually concludes with a report and actually concludes with a report that’s going to be made public so we don’t have to go through all these jigs and reels again.” MacFarlane said he’s not aware of a timeline for when that investigation could be completed.’There was never any context’When the standing committee issued a subpoena for the 2018 documents last week, IRAC warned against releasing the report to the public. It said doing so could undermine its current investigation into the Buddhist groups’ land holdings.WATCH | Calls grow for a public inquiry into Chinese connections of Buddhist monks and nuns:Calls grow for a public inquiry into Chinese connections of Buddhist monks and nunsAbout 250 people came out for a book launch and documentary screening about the Buddhist monks and nuns living on P.E.I. — with many calling for a public inquiry into the groups’ possible connections to the Chinese government. A former CSIS intelligence officer and RCMP director co-authored the book. CBC’s Wayne Thibodeau was there. In the letter provided to MLAs by IRAC this week, Williams reiterated this concern, writing that “disclosing any information in respect of this matter risks undermining an active investigation and could impede the ability of the Commission to carry out its mandate in an independent and impartial manner.” “There was lots of opportunity for IRAC to maybe explain in a little more detail as to where those concerns came from,” MacFarlane said.“We received several letters from IRAC throughout this whole process that the committee undertook where it was insinuated that there could be potential to either undermine or jeopardize the current investigation. “There was never any context into how or why that could be.” MacFarlane said he’s now going to go back to his Green caucus to discuss how to move forward.MLAs reviewed IRAC’s letter immediately after hearing a presentation from the Coalition for the Protection of P.E.I. Lands. The coalition put forward a number of recommendations calling on government to increase transparency and accountability around investigations into land holdings and land protection. ABOUT THE AUTHORBrittany Spencer is a multi-platform reporter and producer with CBC Prince Edward Island. She’s covered politics, health care and the justice system. She’s a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University’s journalism program and joined CBC in 2017. You can reach her at brittany.spencer@cbc.caWith files from Cody MacKay
Legislative committee discovers 2018 IRAC report on P.E.I. land holdings doesnt exist
