Reassigning of director for immigrant investor fund routine: minister
Last Updated: Tuesday, October 28, 2008 | 6:05 AM AT
CBC News
The move of a senior P.E.I. civil servant to a new position days before controversy erupted over the provincial nominee program for immigrants was coincidental, says Innovation Minister Richard Brown.
'This [move] has been in the works for quite a while.'— Innovation Minister Richard Brown
Allan Smith was executive director of Island Investment Development Inc., the provincial Crown corporation that administered the provincial nominee program, for four years. On Sep. 23, three days before news surfaced regarding questions about how the program was run, Smith was moved out of that position to a new job in Summerside.
In the month since Smith was moved, the legislature's public accounts committee and the auditor general have launched investigations of the program that encouraged immigration to P.E.I. and raised funds for business investment.
Under the program, applicants put up $200,000 for an immigrant investor fund and could immigrate pending security and health screening by Immigration Canada. Questions have been raised regarding the quality of the companies approved for immigrant investment and about the involvement of companies owned by government MLAs.
Brown told CBC News Friday that Smith's removal from the program, and the appointment of Deputy Minister Michael Mayne, had no connection with the controversy.
"I can assure Islanders it had nothing to do with it at all," said Brown.
"This has been in the works for quite a while. I felt the deputy minister should be the CEO of the business development department, and we moved Alan Smith to Summerside in order to get that up and running."
Brown said Smith was sent to Summerside to foster economic development in Prince County.
"The people of Summerside area were saying all of the business development, all of the senior people, are in Charlottetown," said Brown.
"It seems the pull is towards Charlottetown. The decision was made, we'll send our senior person to Summerside to get that activity going."
Smith told CBC he had no comment on the change in his position.
Share Tools
Latest Prince Edward Island News Headlines
- Liquor store discussion heats up legislature
- The Opposition raised questions in the provincial legislature Friday over the decision to close the Wood Islands liquor store. more »
- EI rules will hurt primary trades, says P.E.I. premier
- While reaction continues to brew over Thursday's announcement about changes to the Employment Insurance program, P.E.I. Premier Robert Ghiz says provincial officials will be meeting with the federal government to discuss how the new rules will affect Islanders. more »
- HST to hit low-income earners hardest
- Although the proposed harmonized sales tax is good for business, it will hit low-income Islanders the hardest when it's rung in next April, said economists. more »
- Charlottetown businessman named to Order of Canada
- Charlottetown's Fred Hyndman was inducted as a member of the Order of Canada Friday. more »
Top News Headlines
- Everest victim's husband says family not seeking government help
- The husband of a Toronto woman who died trying to climb Mt. Everest on Saturday says his family is not seeking government help to cover the cost of bringing his wife's body home. more »
- Employment Insurance review boards to be scrapped
- The federal government is scrapping two review boards used by people appealing decisions made about their employment insurance. more »
- Teens share bullying tales in confession booth
- Raw stories about bullying emerged when a video booth was set up inside a Quebec high school. more »
- Serial carjacker gets life term for fatal crash
- An Ontario judge was moved to tears while delivering a life prison sentence to a serial carjacker who killed a woman and injured five others after driving a stolen van into her car during a 2010 police chase. more »
- EI rules will hurt primary trades, says P.E.I. premier
- P.E.I. quality of life second-worst, says study
- HST to hit low-income earners hardest
- 902 numbers running out in N.S., P.E.I.
- Islanders worried over EI changes
- Charlottetown businessman named to Order of Canada
- Atlantic Lottery replacing old VLTs
- Tourism P.E.I. handed out $60,000 in free golf passes
- Red Shores Raceway's fastest horse put down
