Auditor general 'assessing' mandate in terms of Trudeau Foundation ask to investigate
The federal auditor general's officesaid Tuesday it is still "assessing" its mandate as it relates to a request from the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation to investigate its handling of two donations with possible links to the Chinese government.
The foundation's interim board chair wrote to the office last week, saying it would welcome an investigation by auditor Karen Hogan into donations made in 2016 and 2017 that totalled $140,000.
The foundation calls itself an independent, non-partisan scholarship organization.
Its CEO and most members of its board of directors recently resigned due to what it described as the politicization of a donation from Chinese billionaire Zhang Bin and another Chinese businessman, Niu Gensheng.
"In these circumstances, the foundation would welcome an investigation by the auditor general of Canada of all aspects concerning the receipt and handling of these donations by the foundation," interim board chair Edward Johnson said in a letter dated last Friday.
"The foundation's own independent review of the donations, to be handled by an independent law firm and accounting firm, will proceed in any case."
He also noted that when the foundation was originally created to honour the legacy of former Liberal prime minister Pierre Trudeau in 2002, it received a $125 million endowment from the federal government.
A foundation spokesperson says the organization believes it is subject to audits by the auditor general, but Hogan's office says it is still looking atwhether that is the case.
"We are still assessing the (Office of the Auditor General of Canada's) mandate in this matter," a spokesman said in a statement.
Asked whether it is in the scope of auditor's office to investigate private donations, the spokesman added: "This is part of the assessment."
According to the office's website, it investigates the activities of federal government departments and agencies, Crown corporations and the country's three territorial governments and their agencies. It can do so through financial and performance audits.
It also lists what it will not do. Inquiries that fall explicitly outside the auditor's mandate include requests to review policy decisions or to intervene in disagreements between private citizens and governments, banks or businesses.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, when asked about the controversial donation and the foundation itself, has told reporters he has not been involved in its activities for nearly a decade.
The Opposition Conservatives, however, contend the foundation that bears Trudeau's name has been a vehicle individuals used to court favour with the prime minister and those close to him. Such accusations have led current and former Liberals to accuse the Conservatives' leader, Pierre Poilievre, of launching partisan attacks.
Poilievre has requested that the commissioner of the Canada Revenue Agency launch an audit into the foundation, citing a report from the Montreal-based newspaper La Presse that in trying to return the now-problematic donation, the organization discovered that the name on the cheque did not match the name of the donor.
In a letter sent last Friday, Poilievre said such reporting raises concerns about foreign interference attempts and suggests the foundation "is not meeting its legal and fiduciary responsibilities as required under the Income Tax Act and reported to the Canada Revenue Agency."
Allegations of China-backed foreign interference attempts in the past two federal election campaigns have followed Trudeau for weeks.
He has assured opposition parties and other critics that former governor general David Johnston, whom he appointed to serve as a special rapporteur on the issue, will recommend in late May whether or not he should call a public inquiry into the matter.
But Poilievre has dismissed Johnston's very appointment as inappropriate, citing the former dignitary's involvement with the foundation.
Along with the Bloc Quebecois and NDP, the Conservatives are demanding that Trudeau just call a public inquiry now, rather than waiting for a recommendation.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 18, 2023.
IN DEPTH
Why the outcome of one Toronto byelection could be consequential for Trudeau, Poilievre
The stakes are high in a looming June 24 federal byelection in a long-held Liberal riding in Toronto, and if Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's party shows signs of slipping, it could spark a bigger conversation, CTV News' pollster Nik Nanos says.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
New signs warning of great white sharks in the works for some East Coast beaches
There's growing evidence that the number of great white sharks is on the rise along Canada's East Coast, where plans are in the works to post warning signs for beachgoers for the first time.
As it happened: How the Oilers crushed the Panthers to force Game 5
The Edmonton Oilers' offence exploded in Game 4 to beat the Florida Panthers 8-1.
Rare surgery in Montreal allows 9-year-old girl to live normal life
A rare surgery at the Montreal Children's Hospital is allowing a nine-year-old girl to keep her adrenal glands and live a normal life.
Your father’s diet before you were born could have affected your health, a new study suggests
Your father's diet before you were born could have played a role in your health, a new study has found.
Global study ranks two Canadians cities high on list of most expensive places to buy a home
As Canadians continue to struggle with the extremely high cost of buying a home in some of the country’s major urban centres, a new global report is underscoring just how expensive some of those markets are.
80 countries at Swiss conference agree territorial integrity of Ukraine must be basis of any peace
Eighty countries jointly called Sunday for the "territorial integrity" of Ukraine to be the basis for any peace agreement to end Russia’s war, though some key developing nations at a Swiss conference did not join in.
Foreign Affairs Minister insists there are no ‘traitors’ in Liberal caucus
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly insists there are no "traitors" in the Liberal caucus, after a report from the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians (NSICOP) alleged there are MPs and senators who are “semi-witting or witting participants” in foreign interference efforts.
Shooting in Detroit suburb injures 9, leaving an 8-year-old in critical condition
Nine people were injured, including two young children and their mother, after a shooter opened fire at a splash pad in a Detroit suburb where families gathered to escape the summer heat Saturday. Law enforcement tracked a suspect to a home, where the man died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said.
Trump blasts immigrants for taking jobs as he courts voters at a Black church, MAGA event in Detroit
Donald Trump blamed immigrants for stealing jobs and government resources as he courted separate groups of Black voters and hardcore conservatives in battleground Michigan on Saturday.
Local Spotlight
Moncton bakery owner celebrates 35 years with 220-foot flatbread
Fancy Pokket owner Mike Timani has decided to create a 220-foot long flat bread to celebrate its 35th anniversary.
'Too much warming': Polar bears in Hudson Bay could go extinct by 2030s if global temperatures continue to increase
If certain goals that are in the Paris Climate Accord aren't met, the existence of polar bears in the Hudson Bay may come to an end.
Swift Current offers to temporarily rename itself if Taylor Swift returns to Sask.
In an attempt to invite one of the most popular recording artists in the world to the land of living skies – the City of Swift Current has offered to rename itself in honour of Taylor Swift.
Adult dogs, puppies arrive in Moncton from Manitoba in search of forever homes
More than a dozen dogs arrived by Cargojet early Thursday morning to the People for Animal Wellbeing Shelter to find a permanent place to call home in New Brunswick.
Video captures whale breaching off Peggy's Cove, N.S.
Peggy's Cove, N.S., is one of the most famous locations in the Maritimes. Recent visitors were treated to more than just the iconic landmark.
Hundreds of fans line up to meet the Trailer Park Boys at promotional event
Hundreds of fans lined up to meet the Trailer Park Boys in Dartmouth, N.S., Tuesday, as Ricky, Bubbles and Julian promoted their new brand of potato chips.
'Nothing a little duct tape won't fix': Bear breaks into northern Ont. woman's car, destroys interior before taking nap
Car break-ins plague Canadians across the country, but instead of worrying about theft, a northern Ontario woman is cleaning up a big mess that she says will not be covered by insurance after a black bear broke into her Honda Civic and took a nap.
Albertans attempt to build the world’s tallest Popsicle stick structure
Members of a Hutterite colony in southern Alberta have potentially built the world's tallest structure made of Popsicle sticks.
After 300 days in a B.C. shelter, this dog finally found his forever home
A dog who spent the first three-and-a-half years of his life suffering and almost a year at a shelter has found his forever home, according to the BC SPCA.