Elections Canada has laid charges under the Elections Act against the Conservative Party of Canada, the Conservative Fund Canada, Senator Doug Finley (campaign director for the Conservative Party), Senator Irving Gerstein (head of the Conservative Fund Canada), and two other Conservative Party employees.
These charges arise out of the 2006 election where the Conservative Party sent money to various Conservative riding associations, who then paid it back to the Conservative Party as “contributions” to advertising run by the national party, and then claimed it as a riding association expense. This became known as the infamous “in and out” scandal.
Elections Canada takes the position that these expenses should have been allocated to the Conservative Party, and would have put that party over the maximum spending limit in the 2006 election. The Conservative Party did not show these expenses on the report filed with Elections Canada – hence the charges.
Note that the laying of the charges was approved by the Director of Public Prosecutions, the non-partisan agency dealing with federal prosecutions.
It makes me wonder how different the results in 2006 would have been if it weren’t for these unethical actions by the Conservatives. This is a sad day, for it only serves to bring politics and our democracy into disrepute.
Here is the media release from Elections Canada, along with the charges.
The Charges / Quatre Accusations
Canada Elections Act Charges Laid
OTTAWA, Friday, February 25, 2011
Pursuant to a decision by the Director of Public Prosecutions, four charges have been laid by the Commissioner of Canada Elections under the Canada Elections Act, a federal statute.
The first court appearance is set for March 18, 2011, in Ontario Provincial Court in Ottawa.
4 Charges:
The Conservative Fund Canada,
Douglas M. Finley,
Irving Gerstein,
Michael Donison and
Susan J. Kehoe,
Between November 1st, 2005 and January 23rd, 2006, in the City of Ottawa, in the Province of Ontario and elsewhere in Canada, did wilfully incur election expenses in relation to the 39th federal general election that exceeded the maximum of $18, 278, 278.64 for the Conservative Party of Canada, contrary to Section 423 (1) of the Canada Elections Act and did thereby commit an offence punishable on summary conviction contrary to Sections 497 (3) (g) and 500 (5) (a) of the said Act.
The Conservative Party of Canada,
Between November 1st, 2005 and January 23rd, 2006, in the City of Ottawa, in the Province of Ontario and elsewhere in Canada, being a registered party whose chief agent, the Conservative Fund Canada, did wilfully incur election expenses in relation to the 39th federal general election that exceeded the maximum of $18, 278, 278.64 for the Conservative Party of Canada, contrary to Sections 423 (1) and 497 (3) (g) of the Canada Elections Act is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction contrary to Section 507 of the said Act.
The Conservative Fund Canada and
Irving Gerstein,
Between January 23rd, 2006 and December 18th, 2006, in the City of Ottawa, in the Province of Ontario, did provide the Chief Electoral Officer with a return on the general election expenses of the Conservative Party of Canada, in relation to the 39th federal general election, that they knew or ought reasonably to have known contained a materially false or misleading statement, namely that all election expenses in respect of the 39th federal general election had been properly recorded, contrary to Section 431 (a) of the Canada Elections Act and did thereby commit an offence punishable on summary conviction contrary to Sections 497 (3) (m) (ii) and 500 (5) (a) of the said Act.
The Conservative Party of Canada,
Between January 23rd, 2006 and December 18th, 2006, in the City of Ottawa, in the Province of Ontario, being a registered party whose chief agent, the Conservative Fund Canada, did provide the Chief Electoral Officer with a return on its general election expenses, in relation to the 39th federal general election, that the Conservative Fund Canada knew or ought reasonably to have known contained a materially false or misleading statement, namely that all election expenses in respect of the 39th federal general election had been properly recorded, contrary to Sections 431 (a) and 497 (3) (m) (ii) of the Canada Elections Act is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction contrary to Section 507 of the said Act.
http://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=abo&dir=com/stat&document=index&lang=e
