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Justin Trudeau slammed for not holding post-convention press conference

He has billed himself as someone who is accessible, transparent and open.

He's consistently slammed Prime Minister Stephen Harper for dodging questions.

Well, Justin Trudeau is the one getting slammed, today, for his aloofness.

That's because the Liberal leader did not make himself available to a media scrum at the conclusion of the party's weekend policy convention — as is usually the norm for opposition party leaders.

Veteran Toronto Star reporter Susan Delacourt tweeted that, after 30 years of attending Liberal Party conventions, this was the first time there was "No closing media [availability] from the leader."

[ Related: Conservative, NDP attacks fail to land as Liberals convene in Montreal ]

In his defence, Trudeau did speak to CBC News, Global News and CTV News individually over the weekend.

He also gave, not one, but two speeches at the convention.

Nevertheless annoyed journos took to Twitter and the weekend political panels to voice their displeasure.

"I think he really has to explain why he wouldn't, at the end of a national convention, hold a news conference so that reporters -- many of whom would be asking the questions that Canadians might be asking -- get to pose those questions," Postmedia News' Mark Kennedy said on CPAC.

"More broadly, as we head towards the next election...if Mr. Trudeau was going to present himself as the man with the new form of politics, a much more transparent form of politics, he's simply going to have to face the music and talk to journalists."

Could party strategists be shielding Trudeau from the media?

[ Related: Top five quotes from Justin Trudeau’s keynote address at the Liberal convention ]

It's not like he didn't have things to talk about.

On Sunday, Liberal delegates attending the Montreal convention did vote in favour of some meaty policy resolutions including the following:

A national daycare program:

"BE IT RESOLVED that a Liberal Government institute a Universal [Early Childhood Education and Care] Program with national standards and monitoring mechanisms, by restoring the bilateral agreements of the previous Liberal Government with the provinces and the territories; increasing federal funding for ECEC to 1% of GDP; re-investing the $1,200 per year from the Universal Child Care Benefit into the Canadian Child Tax Benefit and directing the credit to the parent who remains at home"

Decriminalization of medically-assisted death:

"BE IT RESOLVED that voluntary medically-assisted death be de-criminalized after a public consultation process designed to make recommendations to Parliament with respect to the criteria for access and the appropriate oversight system for medically-assisted end-of-life."

Creating a basic annual income for Canadians:

"BE IT RESOLVED that a Federal Liberal Government work with the provinces and territories to design and implement a Basic Annual Income in such a way that differences are taken into consideration under the existing Canada Social Transfer System."

While there is no guarantee that these policies will be adopted by a potential Justin Trudeau government, he could have at least addressed them.

One of the questions coming into this convention was: can Justin Trudeau talk about and defend policy; in other words does he have the 'substance' to lead the country?

Unfortunately for him, by avoiding the media, that question continues to be asked.

(Photo courtesy of the Canadian Press)

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