‘Deceitful’ Liberals dodging Carney ethics oversight with party appointment, Conservatives say

By reporting to the party, instead of a government entity, Carney will not have to face any scrutiny over his many roles in the private sector as any other public servant would

Published Sep 10, 2024  •  4 minute read

Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney leaves after speaking to reporters at the Liberal caucus retreat in Nanaimo, B.C., Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. Photo by Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press/File

OTTAWA — Mark Carney’s appointment as Liberal advisor to the party, and not the government, is a “deceitful attempt” to shield him from public disclosure of possible conflicts of interests, according to Conservative ethics critic Michael Barrett.

The Liberal Party of Canada announced on Monday that Carney, former central banker and possible leadership contender, will be chairing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s task force on economic growth and issue a report on his findings before the next election.

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What immediately raised eyebrows is the fact that Carney will be reporting to the party, instead of a government entity like the Prime Minister’s Office or the Privy Council Office.

In a letter to Trudeau sent on Tuesday, Barrett said he was “deeply concerned” that Carney, which he describes as the country’s “new de facto Finance Minister,” will not have to face any scrutiny over his many roles in the private sector as any other public servant would.

“It is clear that Mark Carney’s role is not limited to the Liberal Party, but instead dictating the economic policy direction of the current sitting government,” he wrote.

Speaking to reporters in Nanaimo, B.C., Carney said that while it was an “honour” to accept his new role, he said that he was merely there to collect others’ input.

“I’m an outsider. I’m providing a perspective, gathering opinions from interested Canadians… so that we can have the best possible growth strategy that puts people first, grows our economy… in a world that is fundamentally changing,” he said.

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, on the other hand, described Carney as a “real addition to our team” and said it is “really great” that he will be “providing advice” to the Liberal party “so that we can support Canada and Canadians.”

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But the Conservatives are intent on shedding light on conflicts of interest that may exist between his private financial interests and the advice he will be providing to Trudeau.

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Barrett said that Carney has done “very well” in the corporate world since leaving his public roles, and sits on a number of boards, some of which come with stock options, dividends and annual retainers sometimes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Carney currently serves as chair and head of transition investing at Brookfield Asset Management and the United Nations’ special envoy for climate action and finance. He also holds other philanthropic and business roles, including as chair of Bloomberg Inc.

Public filings from Brookfield Asset Management show that, as of 2023, Carney had $987,375 in deferred share units — although most of those shares are unvested.

Barrett said that suggesting that Carney may have conflicts of interest is “not just a hypothetical exercise,” as corporate board members have an obligation to act in the interests of shareholders which can differ from the interest of taxpayers.

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“Under this current Liberal Party arrangement, Mr. Carney gets to unduly influence economic policy of the sitting Government of Canada, without the transparency and accountability required of a Reporting Public Office Holder,” he wrote.

Furthermore, said Barrett, there is no obligation for any of Carney’s findings during his mandate to be made public, as it would be the case in a government consultation.

“Secret advice, that could benefit secret clients, in the advancement of personal financial interests, is clearly unacceptable,” he wrote.

That is why Conservatives are calling on either Trudeau to move Carney’s new role within the government so that he abides by all ethics and conflict of interest laws like all public office holders or, if he is not prepared to resign his positions, to scrap his appointment.

Liberal strategist and principal at Perez Strategies, Andrew Perez, said he saw Carney’s appointment as “generally a good news story” for the Liberal government.

“In spite of all the bad news in the last week or two, it kind of telegraphed to the public (that) in their ninth year in power, and in spite of all the challenges that Trudeau has faced in the last 18 months, he is still able to attract someone of Mr. Carney’s caliber,” he said.

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Perez said that the fact that Carney is tasked to travel across the country by the party will shield Liberals from attacks that they are misusing taxpayer money.

In fact, the only risk he sees is the impact this appointment could have on the internal dynamic at the cabinet table and within caucus.

“If you’re a cabinet minister angling to run for leadership, and the individual who’s on the top of every list as wanting to succeed Trudeau is being rolled the red carpet, there’s this sense that… why is the prime minister like engaging in favouritism?”

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