Former Minister Bill Morneau withdraws from the leadership race for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

In a statement on Twitter, Morneau made it clear that he does not have the support of enough member states to advance to the third round of the campaign.

Morneau, who became finance minister after Justin Trudeau’s first liberal victory in the 2015 elections, abruptly resigned last August from Cabinet and his duties as a member of Parliament.

At the time, he said he would run to succeed Angel Gurria as secretary-general forOrganization for Economic Cooperation and DevelopmentOrganization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

But the opposition has also called for his resignation due to allegations of conflicts of interest in the United Nations Information Service (WE Charity, in English) case. The finance minister revealed that the charity paid two Observation flights He and his family did it in Kenya and Ecuador in 2017.

Morneau was acquitted by the Federal Ethics Commissioner for not disclosing this contribution from WE Charity, stating that the Minister had paid the costs as soon as he became aware of this “contribution”.

But Mario Dion’s office continues to check whether the former minister violated the Conflict of Interest Act by not stepping aside when the Cabinet decided to pay the charity $ 43.5 million to run a large-scale scholarship program, a project that has since been abandoned.

Prime Minister Trudeau and his family also established ties with this organization. Mr. Dion’s office did not want to speculate on Tuesday about when it could issue its decision in the case.

How much do taxpayers pay?

During a question period on Tuesday afternoon, Conservative MP Luke Berthold asked the Prime Minister How much money Canadians have spent on this other fiasco? Liberals on the International Stage. We already know that 19 officials worked on Mr. Morno’s campaign, plus travel and all other expenses., He argued.

The Foreign Minister, Marc Garneau, evaded the question and only thanked Mr. Morneau for his dedication. Who was the ideal candidate to lead the OECD in these difficult times.

Last November the government revealed that 19 Canadian global affairs officials were working part-time on Mr. Morno’s campaign. In a written response to a question from Conservative Representative Corey Tukur, the Foreign Ministry said it could not estimate how much the Canadian government would spend to provide Diplomatic support, endorsement and strategic advice to enhance Mr. Morno’s candidacy.

The department has so far spent $ 6,265.76 on hospitality costs, as part of an effort to contact representatives of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and other representatives in Paris. These expenditures reflect normal diplomatic practice, including these selection processes.The ministry explained.