The presence of the former chief prosecutor of the Charbonneau Commission Sonia LeBel at the Treasury Board is the guarantee of the ethics of the government of the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ), declared François Legault.
In an editorial interview with The dutySaturday, Mr. Legault justified himself on the absence of a proposal from the CAQ in terms of ethics, so far in his campaign, unlike all his previous ones.
TO NOTE
“Do you know what my best guarantee is? Sonia LeBel. Sonia LeBel is President of the Treasury Board. All expenditures go through the treasury. Sonia LeBel was in the Charbonneau Commission, ”said the chief caquiste.
He pointed out that Ms. LeBel acts as a moral surety through her duties in government.
“I sleep on my two ears because I know that Sonia LeBel watches to ensure that there is not a penny that is diverted”, he certified.
During the Charbonneau Commission on the awarding of public contracts in construction and political financing, Ms. LeBel acted as chief prosecutor. She then joined the CAQ before being elected in 2018.
Drainville is wrong
On Saturday, during his exclusive interview with The dutyMr. Legault said his star candidate Bernard Drainville was wrong to accuse Economy Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon of being “I don’t care” about ethics.
The caquiste leader came to the defense of Mr. Fitzgibbon, who had a strained relationship with the Ethics Commissioner of the National Assembly, Ariane Mignolet, due to assets he was slow to dispose of to avoid any appearance of conflict of interest.
“He couldn’t find any buyers,” he replied. Was it necessary to put a gun to his head and tell him: sell the same if there were no buyers? »
On December 9, 2020, Mr. Drainville, then a radio host, reacted on the air to the minister’s ethical disputes following a report by the commissioner.
“Pierre Fitzgibbon was absolutely astoundingly casual and I couldn’t care less,” he said. He doesn’t listen to anything. He does whatever it takes to get himself into trouble. I don’t understand it. »
The CAQ’s tenure has been marked by repeated controversies over Mr. Fitzgibbon’s assets, which have been the subject of a record four investigative reports by Ms. Mignolet.
After having had a strained relationship with the commissioner, Mr. Fitzgibbon was blamed for an ethical breach. He had to temporarily leave his duties as minister while he regularized his situation.
On Saturday, Mr. Legault did not want to say whether Ms. LeBel endorsed the actions of the Minister of the Economy.
“You will ask him the question,” he suggested.
Watch the full interview in the video below.
Discretionary budget
Mr. Legault said that one of his deputies, Louis-Charles Thouin, should not have sent two ministers, including Mr. Fitzgibbon, requests for a discretionary budget.
“Appearance is important too,” he said.
Asked to clarify whether he was referring to an appearance of conflict of interest, Mr. Legault was evasive.
“At the end of the day, aid must be objectively given to those who deserve the help,” explained the CAQ leader.
Mr. Legault expressed himself thus for the first time on a report by the Montreal Journal exposing the links of Mr. Thouin, MP for Rousseau, with an entrepreneur friend from his riding.
The member asked the offices of Mr. Fitzgibbon and his colleague at Tourism Caroline Proulx to donate $17,000 to the company 45 Degrés Nord, which belongs to his friend, Steve Maillette. Mr. Thouin is also the godfather of a child of Mr. Maillette. Finally, three grants totaling $15,500 were awarded in 2019 and 2020.
Political appointments
Mr. Legault explained that the pandemic has prevented his government from fulfilling its commitment made in 2018 to prevent patronage in the senior public service.
During the last campaign, the CAQ had promised to adopt a law regulating the appointments of holders of senior positions in order to prevent them from being appointed on the basis of their political affiliation.
“We had a pandemic for two and a half years but in practice we respected that,” he assured.
Mr. Legault insisted on the number of female appointments, such as the new president and CEO of Hydro-Québec Sophie Brochu.
“We put a lot of emphasis on that,” he said. We went 100% of the times with the skill. »