By Canadian Press

WE Charity affair

Canadian Press NewsAlert: Finance Minister Bill Morneau resigns

Aug 17, 2020 | 4:58 PM

OTTAWA — Bill Morneau is resigning as the federal minister of finance and a Liberal MP.

Morneau, who has been in the role since 2016, says he is putting his name forward as a candidate to lead the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

For several weeks, opposition parties have been calling for Morneau’s resignation over allegations that he had a conflict of interest in the WE Charity affair.

Morneau and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are both facing investigations by the federal ethics watchdog.

The recent news that Mark Carney, a former governor of both the Bank of Canada and Bank of England, is helping to advise Trudeau on the post-pandemic economic recovery fuelled speculation that Morneau was about to be replaced. 

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Last week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tried to shut down speculation that his finance minister was on the way out, taking the unusual step of issuing a statement to say he had full confidence in Morneau and that reports of policy clashes between them were false.

More Coming.

The Canadian Press