Information received through a freedom of information (FOI) request has revealed that Conservative MP David Sweet intervened in February 2011 to help obstruct a lecture by Israel-Palestine expert Dr. Norman Finkelstein. Finkelstein, author of numerous books on the Palestine-Israel conflict -- and often critical of Israel -- was scheduled to speak at Mohawk College in Hamilton, Ontario at an event organized by Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME.) Although the room booking had already been confirmed and paid, within days of a meeting organized by Sweet with college officials, Mohawk College quadrupled the price of the room booking by applying an additional $1500 in security fees.