Liberal MPs fear release of speakers' fees paid to Trudeau family
Some Liberal MPs are concerned about the public release of speaking fees paid to the Trudeau family, as the Commons ethics committee continues to seek records.
Prime Minister Trudeau and his family, including his wife Sophie, mother Margaret and brother Alexandre have been involved with Speakers' Spotlight of Toronto since 2008.
As reported by Blacklock's, at least two Liberal MPs warned against publicizing details:
“It is not the place of this committee to be exposing people by no other reason than that they happen to be related or otherwise connected with members of Parliament,” said Liberal MP Brenda Shanahan (Chateauguay-Lacolle, Que.). Shanahan said the “privacy and confidentiality of these personal documents of individuals who are not members of Parliament, who are family members, (must) be safeguarded in every respect.”
...Liberal MP Greg Fergus (Hull-Aylmer, Que.) said the paper files must not be emailed for fear of a leak. “Once it is out electronically, it’s out,” said Fergus.
During his time as a first-term MP, Justin Trudeau collected $277,000 in personal appearance fees, charging between $10,000 and $20,000 per appearance.
The Toronto Star reported this summer that the initial deadline for producing fee records has already passed:
In his letter to Speakers’ Spotlight, Barrett notes the agency was first asked by the House of Commons ethics committee to produce the documents last month.
The initial deadline was July 29 for all records... [but] the agency subsequently asked for an extension and the committee agreed to a new date of Aug. 19.
Trudeau prorogued Parliament one day before that new deadline, ending the committee investigations that were underway into the WE controversy.
...Despite prorogation, however, Barrett said there was nothing to stop the agency from “doing the right thing” and delivering the documents.
Alexandre Trudeau and Margaret Trudeau are still listed as clients of Speakers' Spotlight. The speeches offered by Alexandre include “Understanding China” and “Canadian History: An Alternative Take on the Past for New View of the Future.”
Margaret's bio notes that she is an "active WE Charity ambassador who has presented to crowds of 20,000+ people at WE Day events across the world."
Trudeau's estranged wife says she wishes world leaders had more maturity and wisdom
By Roberto Wakerell-Cruz
2024 Student Journalism Conference
Applications are now open for The Democracy Fund's third annual Student Journalism Conference. This is a one-of-a-kind, all-expenses-paid opportunity for young aspiring journalists in Canada!
TDF Student Journalism Conference 2024Don't Get Censored
Big Tech is censoring us. Sign up so we can always stay in touch.
Don't Get Censored
Big Tech is censoring us. Sign up so we can always stay in touch.