Pierre Karl Peladeau puts Quebecor shares in trust

Parti Quebecois Leader Pierre Karl Peladeau is shown addressing the Quebec Union of Municipalities annual convention Thursday, May 21, 2015 in Montreal. (Paul Chiasson/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Pierre Karl Peladeau has finally placed his Quebecor shares in trust.

The Parti Quebecois leader declared last year, when he sought to become the head of the party, that he would give up direct control of the media company if he became leader of the PQ.

Last month Peladeau revealed that even though he had been leader since May 15, he had yet to officially yield control of Quebecor because his lawyers were on vacation all summer.

In a statement posted to Facebook, Peladeau wrote that he is under no obligation to place the shares in a trust, according to the National Assembly's current code of ethics, but he's doing it anyway.

The administrators of the new trust, called St.Jerome Investment Company, are Claude Beland, Andre Brosseau and James Woods.

While Peladeau has said repeatedly that he is creating a blind trust, he has not actually done that.

"It's not a blind trust. He knows what he owns," said political analyst Jean Lapierre.

"It's a one-eye trust because you can keep an eye on it and not only that, you know you are going to come back to your company, so the whole question of conflict of interest. You know what you own."

Both the Liberals and the CAQ called the move a smokescreen.

Beland is the administrator of the trust, and he's been instructed not to sell the shares. Peladeau has long said he wants to hold onto them because he wants to leave them to his children.

The CRTC and Industry Canada still have to approve the trust before it comes into effect.

Daniel Weinstock held the Canadian Research Chair on Ethics and Political Philosophy. He points out the problem is that Quebecor is no ordinary company -- it's the largest media conglomerate in the province, publishing the Journal de Montreal and many other newspapers, as well as operating the TVA and LCN television stations.

“What are we watching when we’re watching his media cover him? At his wedding for example, are we watching free political advertising or are we watching the media exercising it's discretion to cover what is most appropriate to cover?”