Angry in the Great White North

The National Post print edition is reporting today that Ethics Commissioner Bernard Shapiro has opened a formal investigation into David Smith and Abotech:

Ethics Comissioner Bernard Shapiro is investigating a Liberal Quebec MP in connection with $1-million in federal contracts being awarded to his family's company.

David Smith, a backbencher who represents Pontiac, said yesterday he is confident Mr Shapiro will clear him of any wrongdoing before the launch of the upcoming election, expected this month, to ensure the matter is not hanging over him during the campaign.

The investigation was prompted by a complaint from Nepean-Carleton Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre. From Poilievre's home page:

Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre sent a letter today to Parliament’s Ethics Commissioner, Bernard Shapiro, requesting an inquiry to determine whether the MP for Pontiac David Smith, has fully complied with the rules, guidelines and standards set out in the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons.

Mr. Poilievre told Dr. Shapiro that the Conservative party is determined to shed light on the allegations of conflict of interest that have been made about Mr. Smith. The Conservative party is dissatisfied with the Liberals' response to the affair; they have only requested a confidential opinion from Shapiro.

Mr. Poilievre does not intend to let the Liberals shovel such a serious integrity issue under the carpet. He believes that the residents of the riding of Pontiac deserve explanations about their MP. "If the Liberals think they can slide out of this by a procedural manoeuvre, they're mistaken," Poilievre said.

As the letter to Dr. Shapiro said, "According to media reports I have read, earlier this year, KPMG audited $15-million in contracts awarded to a large number of companies by Consulting and Audit Canada since 2001 and found irregularities in the handling of these contracts. One of the concerns raised was that sole-sourced contracts were directed to the computer consulting firm Abotech Inc., of which Liberal MP David Smith was the president."

"Other recent media reports have implicated Frank Brazeau, a contracting officer at Consulting and Audit Canada, whose performance came under the scrutiny of auditors at KPMG. In addition to past professional relationship between Mr. Brazeau and Mr. Smith, the media reports that in this past year Mr. Brazeau has become the secretary of the Liberal association of Pontiac. Media reports also state that Association president Luc Martel confirmed that Mr. Brazeau was elected after the 2004 federal election, in which Mr. Smith first entered the House of Commons."

"Some of the questions that arise from these reports and which the inquiry you undertake will need to answer are the following:

• Did Mr. Smith disclose to you or your office that he is a former President of Abotech Inc.?
• Has Mr. Smith or his family (those currently with a holding interest in Abotech Inc.) disclosed to you or your office all contracts that Abotech Inc. has had or currently has with any government entity?
• Did Mr. Smith disclose to you or your office that Mr. Brazeau, reportedly a member of his local Liberal riding association, held a position as a contracting officer with Consulting and Audit Canada?
• Did Mr. Smith disclose to you or your office that Mr. Brazeau had interaction with Abotech Inc. on behalf of Consulting and Audit Canada given that Mr. Smith’s family has an interest in Abotech Inc. and that Mr. Smith was formerly the head?
• Does Mr. Smith have a relationship now with Abotech Inc. that is consistent with the Disclosure Summary signed by Mr. David Smith on June 7, 2005?
• Does the Code have measures in place to ensure that, if these allegations are correct, Mr. David Smith and Mr. Brazeau will not be in a position where there is a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest as it relates to Abotech Inc.? "

The fifth bullet is the one I like. It challenges David Smiths assertion that he has no idea what his wife, a nurse, is doing with Smith's computer consultancy firm, even though it is being run out of the family home:

Mr Smith said he no longer discusses Abotech business since his wife took over the company as majority owner.

From a blogging point-of-view, it is interesting that none of my stuff is in the complaint. The complaint relies entirely on material that has been posted in the Globe and Mail.

I guess blogging hasn't got that level of credibility yet.