Liberal leader wants Manitoba premier suspended if court finds she violated conflict of interest rules
Dougald Lamont seeks 90-day suspension, $5,000 fine for Heather Stefanson
Manitoba's Liberal leader wants a judge to suspend Premier Heather Stefanson from the legislature for three months if the court decides she violated provincial conflict of interest rules.
On Feb. 13, Manitoba's Court of King's Bench will hold a hearing to determine whether Stefanson contravened conflict of interest legislation when she did not promptly disclose $31 million worth of real estate sales by a company that listed her as a director.
Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont launched the civil lawsuit in 2022, after Stefanson apologized for failing to submit disclosure paperwork following the sale of three Winnipeg properties owned by McDonald Grain Company Ltd., a real estate holding company.
Those transactions took place in 2016 and 2019, before the Tuxedo MLA became Manitoba's premier.
The province's Conflict of Interest Act states MLAs must notify the clerk of the legislative assembly within 30 days if they dispose of any asset.
Stefanson told reporters in January 2022 she did not submit the paperwork within the required 30 days.
In court documents, she said her failure to do so was inadvertent.
"I simply did not direct my mind to whether the act required a special filing in respect of this disposition. Any failure to comply with the act was inadvertent," Stefanson said in an affidavit filed on Nov. 21, 2022.
The premier also stated in the affidavit she was not aware of the oversight until journalists raised questions about the property sales early in 2022.
"It is my recollection and belief that this was the first time that it came to my attention that I may not have complied with filing obligations," she said.
In a brief filed on Tuesday, Lamont's legal counsel Dave Hill argued Stefanson cannot benefit from an inadvertent mistake or lapse in judgment.
"The respondent is a member [of the Manitoba legislature] with more than 20 years of experience making these types of disclosures and, prior to becoming an MLA, was employed in the financial services sector where regulation and disclosure are similarly of the utmost importance," Hill wrote in the brief.
"The respondent had a responsibility to determine whether the dispositions of property would trigger the provisions of the act, and to thereafter turn her mind to whether or not specified disclosure was warranted. These responsibilities are only heightened when the transactions in question are valued at more than $30 million."
Hill said in the brief if the court finds Stefanson "knowingly violated the act," the premier ought to be suspended for 90 days and fined $5,000.
"These penalties will serve as a reminder of the importance of integrity, independence and accountability in local government decision-making, and the importance of certainty in reconciling the public duties and pecuniary interests of members," Hill wrote in the brief.
Stefanson responds
The premier said her government has taken steps to improve accountability, specifically by modernizing conflict of interest rules.
"Our government has worked to strengthen conflict of interest legislation so that all elected officials in the province are held to the highest standard of ethics and accountability," Stefanson said in a statement.
She did not comment further on Lamont's civil action.
"Everything I have to say on the matter before the courts was included in the filed affidavit," she said.
Stefanson's Progressive Conservative government faces an election this year, slated for Oct. 3.
There is no modern precedent for a premier serving out a suspension, let alone in an election year. Political scientist Paul Thomas said it isn't clear how a suspension would be enforced.
"This is like the nuclear option to go to the court and inflict the maximum amount of political damage possible," said Thomas, professor emeritus in political studies at the University of Manitoba.
Lamont said in an interview a suspension and fine would be appropriate for a conflict of interest violation, noting the maximum penalty laid out in the act is a disqualification from office.
"If you can't be bothered to do something which could lose you your job, that is a huge problem," Lamont said.
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