TRUDEAUS' $300,000 BENEFITS FROM WE CHARITY

  Members of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s family were paid a total of nearly $300,000 over the last four years to speak at WE Charity events.
   Trudeau's mother, Margaret Trudeau, spoke at approximately 28 events and was paid $250,000 in speaking honorariums between 2016 and 2020. His brother, Alexandre Trudeau, also spoke at eight events from 2017 to 2018 and was paid a total of approximately $32,000.
   While the charity has backed out of the management of the program following days of controversy, Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion said in a letter addressed to Conservative MP Michael Barrett that the Tory MP’s request for an investigation "satisfies the requirements" laid out in the Conflict of Interest Act.
   Specifically, Barrett alleges that Trudeau violated a provision in the Act that "prohibits public office holders from making any decision or participating in the making of a decision that furthers their private interests or improperly furthers the private interests of another person."
   He claims that Trudeau had a duty to recuse himself from any discussion or decision relating to WE Charity, given the prime minister's close ties to the organization and his wife’s involvement, and that Trudeau violated the Act when he announced that WE Charity would administer the Canada Student Service Grant.