Juliet O'Neill , Canwest News Service Published: Wednesday, July 16, 2008
OTTAWA - Elections Canada reimbursed 17 Conservative candidates, most of whom won seats in Parliament, before a "red flag" went up to indicate that their claims and 50 others were potentially illegal, chief electoral officer Marc Mayrand told the Commons ethics committee Wednesday. He said no steps have been taken to recover the funds from the 17 while Conservatives fight Elections Canada in court over its investigation into whether 67 Conservative candidates claimed taxpayer reimbursements for $1.2 million worth of advertising spending that should have been put on the national party's books. Elections Canada has withheld reimbursements from the 50 others while its investigation and the court case are underway. The money was spent on regional campaign advertising and Mayrand said the "red flag" went up when some candidates and official agents were unable to explain the nature of the expense they were claiming.
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The MPs who were reimbursed are: Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon (Pontiac), Conservative whip Jay Hill (Prince George-Peace River), former foreign affairs minister Maxime Bernier (Beauce), International Co-operation Minister Josee Verner (Louis St. Laurent), Daniel Petit (Charlesbourg-Haute-Saint-Charles), Steven Blaney (Levis-Bellechasse), Jacques Gourde (Lotbiniere-Chutes-de-la-Chaudiere), Luc Harvey (Louis-Hebert), Pat Davidson (Sarnia-Lambton), David Anderson (Cypress Hills-Grasslands), and Colin Mayes (Okanagan-Shuswap).
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Don Quixote Note: Our local M.P. and his team managed to get reimbursed before Elections Canada closed down the cookie jar. A tip of the hat for their efficiency in filing early.
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