Canadian stimulus money goes to companies, people implicated in Quebec scandals
MONTREAL—Some of the public money set aside for Canada’s economic recovery has ended up in the hands of companies and individuals accused of taking part in an elaborate collusion scheme in Quebec.
An investigation by The Canadian Press of stimulus funding in three municipalities recently raided by police revealed three separate cases where companies tied to criminal charges received contracts under the multibillion-dollar federal-provincial infrastructure plan.
These include companies owned by construction entrepeneurs Tony Accurso and Lino Zambito, both of whom are facing a long series of charges. Money also went to BPR and Transport and Excavation Mascouche (TAM) — two companies charged with fraud and conspiracy.
Word of their success in obtaining stimulus funding comes after a Canadian Press report last week that many individuals facing charges for improper activity at the municipal level have ties to federal parties through political donations.
Despite the flurry of allegations in recent years about corruption in Quebec’s construction industry, the federal government has repeatedly dismissed the idea that it should adopt special safeguards for its historic stimulus program. It has noted that municipal tendering rules are generally a provincial responsibility.
The Canadian Press examined a sample of infrastructure projects that received federal stimulus money in Boisbriand, Laval and Terrebonne, three rapidly growing bedroom communities north of Montreal.
All three communities witnessed police raids — two last month and one last year.
Fifteen people have since been arrested in connection with alleged illegal payments during the construction of water-treatment plants shared by Terrebonne and its neighbour, Mascouche. A separate police roundup in 2011 also saw seven people charged for allegedly taking part in a kickback system in Boisbriand.
The criminal charges are for projects unrelated to the stimulus program; there has never been any accusation of wrongdoing against any company over its involvement in that federally funded effort.
There is, however, considerable overlap between the alleged members of the collusion ring and those who carried out infrastructure work under one of several federal-provincial stimulus funds in Quebec, known under its French acronym, PRECO.
Under that PRECO program, Ottawa transferred $350 million to Quebec, which pitched in the same amount and made the money available to municipalities for water-related infrastructure.
Municipalities ultimately decided who got the work — not Ottawa.
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Canada News: Canadian stimulus money goes to companies, people implicated in Quebec scandals - thestar.com
MONTREAL—Some of the public money set aside for Canada’s economic recovery has ended up in the hands of companies and individuals accused of taking part in an elaborate collusion scheme in Quebec.
An investigation by The Canadian Press of stimulus funding in three municipalities recently raided by police revealed three separate cases where companies tied to criminal charges received contracts under the multibillion-dollar federal-provincial infrastructure plan.
These include companies owned by construction entrepeneurs Tony Accurso and Lino Zambito, both of whom are facing a long series of charges. Money also went to BPR and Transport and Excavation Mascouche (TAM) — two companies charged with fraud and conspiracy.
Word of their success in obtaining stimulus funding comes after a Canadian Press report last week that many individuals facing charges for improper activity at the municipal level have ties to federal parties through political donations.
Despite the flurry of allegations in recent years about corruption in Quebec’s construction industry, the federal government has repeatedly dismissed the idea that it should adopt special safeguards for its historic stimulus program. It has noted that municipal tendering rules are generally a provincial responsibility.
The Canadian Press examined a sample of infrastructure projects that received federal stimulus money in Boisbriand, Laval and Terrebonne, three rapidly growing bedroom communities north of Montreal.
All three communities witnessed police raids — two last month and one last year.
Fifteen people have since been arrested in connection with alleged illegal payments during the construction of water-treatment plants shared by Terrebonne and its neighbour, Mascouche. A separate police roundup in 2011 also saw seven people charged for allegedly taking part in a kickback system in Boisbriand.
The criminal charges are for projects unrelated to the stimulus program; there has never been any accusation of wrongdoing against any company over its involvement in that federally funded effort.
There is, however, considerable overlap between the alleged members of the collusion ring and those who carried out infrastructure work under one of several federal-provincial stimulus funds in Quebec, known under its French acronym, PRECO.
Under that PRECO program, Ottawa transferred $350 million to Quebec, which pitched in the same amount and made the money available to municipalities for water-related infrastructure.
Municipalities ultimately decided who got the work — not Ottawa.
more
Canada News: Canadian stimulus money goes to companies, people implicated in Quebec scandals - thestar.com