Investigation into ethical conduct of green fund board members will be completed by August.
Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) is a federally established foundation that invests in green technologies. Former Industry Minister Navdeep Bains disregarded warnings about appointing a Liberal Party donor to the board, according to records.
On April 17, Ethics Commissioner Konrad von Finckenstein informed the Commons ethics committee that the investigation into two board members of SDTC is nearing completion.
Mr. von Finckenstein assured the committee, “I can tell you now that by certainly before the first of August, you’ll see the report.” However, he did not disclose the names of the directors under investigation.
During the questioning, Conservative MP Larry Brock inquired about any criminal elements associated with the complaints, to which Mr. von Finckenstein responded in the negative.
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Last year, Annette Verschuren, the chair of SDTC’s board, resigned amidst allegations of approving funds for her company, NRStor. She defended her actions by claiming it was typical for the government to support the clean tech sector.
Ms. Verschuren had voted to grant her company $217,000 and justified her decision by stating that it was part of providing COVID-19 relief payments to companies supported by SDTC, including her own. Despite legal consultation beforehand, declaring no conflict of interest, she resigned on December 1.
The industry committee also heard about warnings given to former Minister Navdeep Bains regarding the potential conflict of interest in appointing Ms. Verschuren, which he dismissed.
RCGT identified several problems, such as inconsistently applied conflict of interest policies, non-compliant funding streams, unanimous board decisions, untracked COVID-19 payments, and lack of internal complaint tracking. Questions were raised about the allocation of substantial funds as well.
Besides Ms. Verschuren, Leah Lawrence, the president and CEO, also resigned from SDTC last November after expressing concerns about replacing then-chair Jim Balsillie with potential conflicts of interest. Testimonies revealed instances of directors voting on grants benefiting their own interests.
With files from Noé Chartier
