QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Public Safety
Appointment of Financial Adviser
September 19, 2024
Minister, on September 10, Mark Carney signed on as your government’s de facto finance minister, but he isn’t a Privy Council Office appointment. Instead, he works for the Liberal Party of Canada, and, as such, he isn’t subject to the Conflict of Interest Act.
One week after he started his job for the Liberal Party, we know why that distinction was made for “Carbon Tax Carney.” On September 17, Carney, as Chair of Brookfield Asset Management, secured a deal with the Trudeau government that will see that company receive $10 billion in taxpayer funds to set up an equity fund to oversee Canadian pensions — one week later.
As Minister of Democratic Institutions, did you have concerns about this arrangement? Was it your suggestion to not have “Carbon Tax Carney” as a PCO appointment or was it Justin Trudeau’s? Whose idea was it to have “Carbon Tax Carney” work for your party so he would be shielded from the law you obviously knew he would break?
Hello, Madam Speaker. I am very pleased to see someone from my province presiding in this chamber. Thank you for inviting me to be here.
Senator Housakos, it’s great. This is a repeat of what I saw at 2:15 p.m. in the other place, same kind of silly little phrases: “Carbon Tax Carney.” He is somebody who served Prime Minister Harper as Governor of the Bank of Canada.
I would think that you would be proud that eminent Canadians come forward to volunteer in a political party to participate in the political process. If you wish to make a series of derogatory comments under privilege and talk about him breaking laws, you can do so in this chamber. I would be more careful if you were to repeat it outside, saying that Governor Carney, in fact, broke the law. I’m happy that he’s helping our government with economic growth policy and think Canadians should be reassured that people of his calibre step forward to volunteer in the political process. I would think you of all people would be happy when people volunteer in the political process.
Minister, the only thing that Mr. Carney — “Carbon Tax Carney” — has helped to do is grow the portfolio of the companies he represents, on the first day that he has been on this job.
When you were fisheries minister, you had your own conflict of interest scandal with the awarding of a lucrative fishing licence to a family member who didn’t even own a boat, so you should know full well why these rules and conflict of interest guidelines are in place.
If it wasn’t your idea to have “Carbon Tax Carney” subject to our ethics law, did you at least try to advise against this, or were you in full agreement with having him work for the Liberal Party of Canada and not the Government of Canada?
Your Honour, I wouldn’t propose to correct a senior parliamentarian like Senator Housakos. He knows very well that fishing licence was not awarded. He knows very well that the proponent was an Indigenous community and not an individual. So again, if you can invent a series of facts here —
As I said in the previous answer, I’m pleased that Mark Carney, somebody who served previous governments both in this country and with important allies of Canada in Europe in a very senior economic capacity, has decided to come forward and provide advice to a political party. As I say, some people here may be shocked by that. I wouldn’t have thought that Senator Housakos would have been one of them.
