Tories call for transparency on Carney’s ‘massive conflicts of interest’

Conservative MP Michael Barrett publicly release a statement listing conflicts of interest regarding Liberal leadership candidate Mark Carney, calling for transparency.

Carney, former head of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, was Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s economic adviser before throwing his name into the hat as Liberal leader — who will become Canada’s next de facto prime minister if he wins the March 9 race, despite not being an elected politician.

Barrett, shadow minister for ethics and accountable government, says Carney “must tell Canadians about his massive conflicts of interest” and commit to submitting his ethics disclosure prior to taking office.

The Public Office Holder Conflict of Interest Act requires officials to submit an ethics disclosure within 60 days after appointment to a government role. In Carney’s case, this would mean 60 days after Carney would assume the role of prime minister, if he wins the Liberal leadership contest, wrote Barrett.

Carney “would have up to 120 days to sign [his] public declaration,” he wrote.

“This means you could be prime minister for up to four months before Canadians see your ethics disclosure—more than enough time for you to make decisions that benefit your rich and well-connected friends, and even after holding an election.”

Barrett listed Carney’s alleged ethics breaches, as well as his global positions and failure to disclose their influence on his policy advising.

“We already know that, so far, Justin Trudeau has managed to protect you from ethics disclosure by appointing you to a Board consisting only of you, which provided him with advice on economic growth,” wrote Barrett.

“This procedure differs from what most advisors to the prime minister would face, precisely because the standard process would require you to disclose your conflicts of interest.”

Barrett points out during the time of his appointment, Carney advocated for heat pumps while he was simultaneously Chair of Brookfield Asset Management, which owns a heat pump company.

“At a time when Brookfield was actively lobbying the Liberal government for $10 billion in taxpayer funds,” wrote Barrett.

“Your various global positions included roles on the board of Stripe, the Global Advisory Board of PIMCO, and the Chairmanship of Bloomberg. Yet, you have failed to disclose how any of those roles may have influenced the advice you gave the government.”

Carney while appearing on CBC over the weekend refused to answer whether he would submit an ethics disclosure before a general election.

“Canadians expect transparency and deserve better,” wrote Barrett in his statement.

“Today, I am calling on you to commit to fully revealing any conflicts of interest and other ethical disclosures before potentially being appointed prime minister and definitely before an election is called should you win the Liberal leadership race.”

“You must disclose all forms of compensation you received while advising Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party of Canada, and any compensation you have received or will receive as a result of your departure from your various positions.”