Former Manitoba premier, cabinet minister pay ethics investigation fines

Former Manitoba premier Heather Stefanson has paid a fine of $18,000 for violating the province's conflict of interest law in pushing for a mining project. Former Manitoba premier Heather Stefanson speaks to media at the Manitoba Legislative Building in Winnipeg, on Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Aaron Vincent Elkaim

WINNIPEG — Former Manitoba premier Heather Stefanson has paid an $18,000 fine for violating the province’s conflict of interest law in pushing for a mining project.

Legislature Speaker Tom Lindsey says Stefanson submitted the payment last week and one of her former cabinet ministers, Jeff Wharton, has also paid his fine.

The former economic development minister, who remains a sitting member with the Opposition Progressive Conservatives, was fined $10,000.

In early October, members of the legislature approved the recommended penalties and other findings in a report from ethics commissioner Jeffrey Schnoor.

Schnoor’s report says Stefanson tried to get a mining project approved after her Progressive Conservatives lost the 2023 election and before the NDP government could be sworn in.

Stefanson has said she was acting in the public interest, had no personal stake in the project and no licence was issued in the end.

Cliff Cullen, a former deputy premier, was also fined $12,000. He has left politics and has not spoken publicly on the matter.

Brittany Hobson, The Canadian Press