Update: A media ban on testimony becomes the main story
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The Gomery Inquiry into Canada's sponsorship scandal has turned its attention in the last three weeks to ad agency billing practices. A review of recent testimony reads like a list from an ethics lecture on dubious practices.
Lafleur Communication Marketing head Jean Lafleur had memory problems when asked to explain what his firm did to earn millions from the federal government. His son Eric's memory was somewhat better. Maybe it's just a numbers thing. Jean Eric only had to explain $2.8 million in earnings from work to spread the federal government's name and image around Quebec in the wake of a nearly successful succession campaign by the Quebec government. His father had $9.3 million in personal earnings over almost a decade to explain away. Multiple billings for the same work was one of the irregularities that Eric Lafleur admitted seemed unjustified.
Gilles-Andre Gosselin was on the stand to explain his 3,673 hours of billings during 1997. He explained that he was working between 13 and 17 hours most days, and ruined his health doing the work that helped his two PR firms bring in $11.3 million in revenue that year.
Billings in addition to commissions, charges for work done by sub-contractors (in addition to direct bills from the sub-contractors) and other questionable expenses have been closely examined by lawyers and inquiry commissioner John Gommery in recent weeks.
The inquiry is looking into about $100 million in agency earnings related to the $250 sponsorship campaign run over a number of years. The federal government has launched a lawsuit to recover $41 million of those agency fees.
Thanks to CBC News, The Globe and Mail and The Toronto Star.
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