fundraising

Wednesday December 14, 2016

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator - Wednesday December 14, 2016 Justin Trudeau insists fundraiser attendees hold no special sway on policy Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says business people bend his ear at Liberal Party fundraisers, but he insists they do not hold any sway on government policy. Answering questions on the so-called "cash-for-access" controversy, Trudeau insisted he will answer questions or listen to anyone who wants to speak with him about issues that are important to them. "The fact is, my approach continues to be to listen broadly through every possible opportunity I get and make the right decisions based on what's best for Canada," he said during a year-end news conference in Ottawa. "I can say that in various Liberal Party events, I listen to people as I will in any given situation, but the decisions I make in government are ones based on what is right for Canadians, not on what an individual at a fundraiser might say.Ó Trudeau said he and his cabinet ministers are "extremely available" through a number of public and private venues, including town halls, news conferences, or closed-door meetings with municipal leaders and first responders. "This is a government that is extraordinarily open to multiple perspectives, as we always have. At no point does attending a fundraiser give particular or special access on policy to anyone," he said. Trudeau also expressed confidence that fundraising events meet the spirit of his own guidelines. His comments today appeared to run counter to guidance offered by Christina Topp, interim national director of the Liberal Party of Canada, in a letter to all ministers and parliamentary secretaries on Nov. 4, 2016. "Any individual who wishes to initiate a policy discussion is immediately redirected to instead make an appointment with the relevant office. As you know, fundraising events are partisan functions where we do not discuss government business," she wrote. (Source: CBC)Êhttp://www.cbc.ca/news/p

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday December 14, 2016

Justin Trudeau insists fundraiser attendees hold no special sway on policy

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says business people bend his ear at Liberal Party fundraisers, but he insists they do not hold any sway on government policy.

Answering questions on the so-called “cash-for-access” controversy, Trudeau insisted he will answer questions or listen to anyone who wants to speak with him about issues that are important to them.

“The fact is, my approach continues to be to listen broadly through every possible opportunity I get and make the right decisions based on what’s best for Canada,” he said during a year-end news conference in Ottawa. “I can say that in various Liberal Party events, I listen to people as I will in any given situation, but the decisions I make in government are ones based on what is right for Canadians, not on what an individual at a fundraiser might say.”

Trudeau said he and his cabinet ministers are “extremely available” through a number of public and private venues, including town halls, news conferences, or closed-door meetings with municipal leaders and first responders.

“This is a government that is extraordinarily open to multiple perspectives, as we always have. At no point does attending a fundraiser give particular or special access on policy to anyone,” he said.

Trudeau also expressed confidence that fundraising events meet the spirit of his own guidelines.

His comments today appeared to run counter to guidance offered by Christina Topp, interim national director of the Liberal Party of Canada, in a letter to all ministers and parliamentary secretaries on Nov. 4, 2016.

“Any individual who wishes to initiate a policy discussion is immediately redirected to instead make an appointment with the relevant office. As you know, fundraising events are partisan functions where we do not discuss government business,” she wrote. (Source: CBC)

 

Thursday April 7, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday April 7, 2016

Justin Trudeau dismisses worries over private fundraiser with attorney general

With his justice minister set to woo supporters at a $500-a-ticket event, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is voicing little appetite to end private political fundraisers.

Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould is the guest star at a Liberal fundraiser Thursday night hosted at the downtown Toronto law office of Torys LLP.

“Please join us for a private evening in support of the Liberal Party of Canada with the Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould,” reads the event notice on the Liberal website.

Having the justice minister appear at an event at one of the country’s top law firms creates the appearance of a potential conflict of interest, Conservative MP John Brassard said.

“You blur those lines between party business and government business,” he told the Star

“This is a party that is billing themselves as a champion of the middle class and you’ve got a $500-a-ticket fundraiser that’s happening in a big Bay St. law firm,” said Brassard, the MP for Barrie-Innisfil.

“I’ll let others draw their conclusions whether this is pay for access,” he said.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne this week said her ministers would no longer attend such private fundraisers after the Star revealed that provincial cabinet members were expected to raise upwards of $500,000 for party coffers. (Source: Toronto Star)

 

Wednesday March 30, 2016

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Wednesday March 30, 2016 Ontario, the Wild West of Political fundraising Kathleen WynneÕs Liberals will rake in roughly $3 million in a single fundraiser Wednesday night. At their sumptuous Heritage Dinner, ÒVictory TablesÓ are priced at $18,000 for corporate high-flyers, and the biggest donors are feted at a private cocktail reception by a grateful premier. But thatÕs only half the story of how the governing party raises big money. In Ontario, the Wild West of fundraising, cabinet ministers are assigned secret targets as high as $500,000 a year, the Star has learned. The unsavoury spectacle of OntarioÕs politicians supplicating big business and big labour for events such as the Heritage Dinner is only a small piece of the fundraising puzzle glimpsed by the public. Beyond the showy hobnobbing, shadowy appeals by cabinet ministers for corporate money are the untold story at QueenÕs Park. Corporate and union contributions that Wynne persists in publicly defending create a demonstrable conflict of interest for cabinet ministers, which is why they were banned for federal parties in 2006, and are no longer legal in four other provinces. And yet, according to multiple sources, top cabinet ministers at QueenÕs Park are given financial targets that are typically in the range of $250,000 annually Ñ double that amount in some cases. These quasi-quotas are never written down, conveyed instead by the Ontario Liberal Fund through confidential meetings and phone calls. They are the price of admission to power, revealed here for the first time, and they are astonishingly high. The two most marketable ministers are Charles Sousa, the minister of finance, and Eric Hoskins, who helms the provinceÕs $52-billion health care budget. Both are expected to bring in as much as $500,000 a year, well-placed sources have confirmed. SousaÕs control of the provincial treasury, tax policy and auto insurance makes him a prime t

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday March 30, 2016

Ontario, the Wild West of Political fundraising

Kathleen Wynne’s Liberals will rake in roughly $3 million in a single fundraiser Wednesday night.

Fun with Queen’s Park

At their sumptuous Heritage Dinner, “Victory Tables” are priced at $18,000 for corporate high-flyers, and the biggest donors are feted at a private cocktail reception by a grateful premier. But that’s only half the story of how the governing party raises big money.

In Ontario, the Wild West of fundraising, cabinet ministers are assigned secret targets as high as $500,000 a year, the Star has learned.

The unsavoury spectacle of Ontario’s politicians supplicating big business and big labour for events such as the Heritage Dinner is only a small piece of the fundraising puzzle glimpsed by the public. Beyond the showy hobnobbing, shadowy appeals by cabinet ministers for corporate money are the untold story at Queen’s Park.

Corporate and union contributions that Wynne persists in publicly defending create a demonstrable conflict of interest for cabinet ministers, which is why they were banned for federal parties in 2006, and are no longer legal in four other provinces.

And yet, according to multiple sources, top cabinet ministers at Queen’s Park are given financial targets that are typically in the range of $250,000 annually — double that amount in some cases. These quasi-quotas are never written down, conveyed instead by the Ontario Liberal Fund through confidential meetings and phone calls.

They are the price of admission to power, revealed here for the first time, and they are astonishingly high.

The two most marketable ministers are Charles Sousa, the minister of finance, and Eric Hoskins, who helms the province’s $52-billion health care budget. Both are expected to bring in as much as $500,000 a year, well-placed sources have confirmed.

Sousa’s control of the provincial treasury, tax policy and auto insurance makes him a prime target for lobbyists in the banking and insurance industries. But Hoskins is also in high demand because of his regulatory authority over drug companies and nursing home conglomerates.

That’s why Hoskins was the big draw for the Ontario Long Term Care Association at an event organized with the Liberal Fund last year, which offered “an unprecedented opportunity only for OLTCA members” where they could “discuss the sector with the minister, up close and personal.” (Source: Toronto Star)

 

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Tuesday, May 7, 2013By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Liberals raise $1M in first 3 weeks under JT

What a difference a few weeks, and a charismatic new leader, have made to the financial fortunes of the federal Liberal Party.

After years of struggling to persuade supporters their money wouldn’t be wasted on the Liberal cause, the gold is now flowing into party coffers at what may be an unprecedented rate.

Since Justin Trudeau’s virtual coronation as Liberal leader on April 14, the party reports it has raised more than one million dollars.

In a statement this morning, the party says an “incredible surge in grassroots donations” has seen over 14,000 Canadians donate to the party — 6,000 of them for the first time, and nearly 1,000 giving to the campaign more than once.

The party has released a video of a very casually dressed Trudeau announcing the numbers and thanking both new and old contributors for their support and for believing again in the Liberals.

“We’re beginning to see what hope and hard work can accomplish together,” he says, adding “It’s just the beginning, but I know we’re going to do it.” (Source: CBC News)

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Wednesday, April 10, 2013By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – April 10, 2013

The Spectator’s View: Help for Haida cannon shot away

Preserving our national historical sites and sharing them with younger generations is critical to our future as Canadians.

But doing so costs money, sometimes a fair amount of money. And that can be hard to come by in the face of federal budget cuts and a report that warns about a third of our “cultural assets” are not in good shape.

So it should not be surprising that, after a five-year fee freeze, Parks Canada proposes to raise fees — and create a range of new ones — for our national parks and historic sites.

Generally, proposed increases for existing fees are at or somewhat above the consumer price index, and after five static years, that is reasonable. Parks Canada, though, has clearly put a lot of effort into creating a range of what sound to be very interesting proposed new programs and services that are aimed at pulling in cash to better cover the costs of maintaining our national treasures.

For HMCS Haida, the Hamilton-based national historic site, the proposal would mean a new array of possibilities for those with money to spend. As The Spectator’s Matthew Van Dongen has reported, for $500, you would be able to fire a dual four-inch turret gun on the Haida. For the same fee, you could sound the sirenete, a steam-powered horn purchased for $12,000 by the Friends of HMCS Haida, the volunteer organization dedicated to the Second World War ship that is the last Tribal class destroyer in the world. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)