Carney Faces Pressure to Disclose Conflicts Before Election

Conservatives Call on Mark Carney to Disclose Potential Conflicts of Interest

The Conservative Party is urging Liberal leadership candidate Mark Carney to proactively disclose any potential financial conflicts of interest. They argue that existing ethics rules may not ensure such information is made public before a potential spring federal election campaign.

In a letter and press conference, Conservative ethics critic Michael Barrett highlighted the timelines in the current ethics rules for cabinet ministers and the prime minister. These rules would allow Mr. Carney up to four months after becoming Prime Minister to publicly disclose any conflicts.

Mr. Carney's position as the frontrunner in the Liberal leadership race was further solidified by the release of new fundraising figures. These figures show him significantly ahead of other candidates in terms of both total funds raised and number of contributors.

While Mr. Carney has pledged to follow all existing rules, the Conservatives argue that this is insufficient given the potential for a quick turnaround between the Liberal Party announcing its new leader on March 9th and the launch of a federal election campaign shortly after.

"To be clear, the rules weren't designed for a situation like this," Mr. Barrett stated.

Currently, Mr. Carney is not subject to any federal ethics rules as he is neither an elected MP nor a public-office holder. In a recent interview, he downplayed any potential conflicts of interest and affirmed his commitment to following all rules.

Mr. Carney's campaign spokesperson, Emily Williams, reiterated this stance in a statement and criticized Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre for lacking work experience outside of politics.

Mr. Carney announced his resignation from Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. and other business roles in January to pursue the Liberal Party leadership. He also stepped down from various board positions, including Bloomberg LP, Stripe Inc., and PIMCO.

The Conflict of Interest Act, which outlines ethics rules for federal public-office holders, allows individuals up to 60 days after taking office to submit a confidential report to the ethics commissioner. This report must detail their financial liabilities, income sources, charitable work, and other relevant information.

Additionally, there is a 120-day deadline to publicly declare assets and outside activities, subject to certain exemptions. Public-office holders may also be required to place certain assets under a blind trust.

Liberal campaign fundraising figures released by Elections Canada show Mr. Carney raised $1.9 million from 11,260 donors. However, these figures may not fully reflect the fundraising efforts of all campaigns, as some rely more heavily on raising funds through the party.