Fire former P.E.I. deputy minister: Opposition

P.E.I.'s Opposition leader Olive Crane is calling on the premier to fire Brooke MacMillan for his role in the provincial nominee program.

MacMillan, who was the deputy minister of Innovation in 2008, benefited financially from the program, Crane said during a public accounts committee meeting Thursday.

So the premier, who is ultimately responsible for deputy ministers, should fire him, she said.

But Premier Robert Ghiz's office says MacMillan, who is now the CEO of the P.E.I. Liquor Commission, has paid back the money he received from the provincial nominee program and there are no plans to fire him.

'This will never go away, there will not be a new program until there's full accountability here.' —Opposition leader Olive Crane

The program, known as PNP, matched foreign investors who wanted to immigrate to Canada with P.E.I. companies they could invest in and have their immigration application expedited in return.

PNP, which operated from 2001 to 2008, attracted controversy when it became public that 2,000 potential immigrants were pushed through the program in its final year and that companies owned by MLAs and senior civil servants received PNP money.

There were also questions about the quality of the companies approved for investment.

MacMillan played a role in changing rules about which P.E.I. companies could qualify for the immigrant money, Crane alleged Thursday.

"This was a really good program with good intentions. But when you have MLAs, deputy ministers and ministers involved, and the premier endorsing the behaviour, we have a serious problem," she said.

"This will never go away, there will not be a new program until there's full accountability here."

The Auditor General's report into the PNP found three high-ranking civil servants received money through the program, including MacMillan and two former Tory bureaucrats.

Crane contends MacMillan is different than the two Tories because they didn't have a direct role in the program.