Pierre Fitzgibbon expects further ethical inquiries about him
Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister of Economy, Innovation and Energy.
“There will be more. It doesn't bother me”: Pierre Fitzgibbon is clearly not worried by the sixth investigation of the ethics and professional conduct commissioner against him, for having participated in a hunting party on a private island in Lake Memphremagog.
The Minister of the Economy said he was “happy” with the opening of the investigation at a press briefing on Friday morning, without wanting to comment further on the details of his hunting party. “It's private. This is my private life,” he added.
Mr. Fitzgibbon, however, confirmed that he would discuss the situation with the commissioner, Ariane Mignolet.
“I am not worried. He will collaborate in the investigation, ”said François Legault, confident that his super-minister was not going to stay too long in hot water.
Pierre Fitzgibbon took part in a pheasant hunting party on the private island of a group of wealthy businessmen benefiting from public subsidies in October, an investigation by the Journal de Montréal has revealed. >. He still hasn't confirmed if he paid for the activity.
If the value of this hunting trip is over $200, the Minister had the obligation to declare it to the Ethics Commissioner, if he did not bear the costs himself. He would then have had 30 days to file his statement with the commissioner, a deadline that has already passed.
The CAQ trivializes ethical issues, according to the opposition parties
“[The government] does not care about the code of ethics,” denounced the interim leader of the Liberal Party (PLQ), Marc Tanguay, in a press briefing today.
“François Legault has an important responsibility […] to ensure that every decision is made in favor of Quebecers and not potentially in favor of someone else’s friends,” he added.
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The co-spokesperson for Québec solidaire, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, deplored the “lightness” with which François Legault treats the misconduct of Pierre Fitzgibbon.
“We must not not that repetition becomes a pretext for trivialization. It’s not because it’s the sixth investigation that it’s less serious, ”he said in a press briefing.
