Ex-PMO aide Bruce Carson's court case resumes Oct. 17

The Canadian Press

Posted: Oct 1, 2012 11:41 AM ET

Last Updated: Oct 1, 2012 11:40 AM ET

Bruce Carson worked as a senior aide to Prime Minister Stephen Harper until 2008. (CBC)

The influence-peddling case against a former aide to Stephen Harper is set to continue later this month following a brief Ontario court hearing.

The court set further hearings on the charge against Bruce Carson for Oct. 17 and 22.

An RCMP investigation began after the Prime Minister's Office contacted police in March 2011 with allegations Carson had illegally lobbied the federal government.

Carson, 66, is charged with one count of fraud on the government, also known as influence peddling.

Lawyer Pat McCann has said his client — an adviser to Harper from 2006 to 2008 — will vigorously defend the allegation.

The Aboriginal Peoples Television Network first raised concerns about possible impropriety, reporting that Carson had allegedly lobbied Indian and Northern Affairs on behalf of an Ottawa-based water company that employed his girlfriend.

Stay Connected with CBC News

Big Box Advertisement

Power & Politics Ballot Box question by Rosemary Barton May. 24, 2013 4:48 PM Does Rob Ford's statement put an end to the allegations of crack use?

Top News Headlines

3 more suspects arrested in slaying of U.K. soldier

3 more suspects arrested in slaying of U.K. soldier: British police investigating the savage killing of an off-duty soldier in London have arrested three more suspects. more »

Toronto mayor's brother says he never dealt drugs: The brother of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford has vehemently denied allegations in Saturday's Globe and Mail that he was involved in the illicit drug trade in the 1980s. more »
Hockey Canada votes to ban bodychecking in peewee hockey: Hockey Canada's board of directors voted to eliminate bodychecking from peewee-level hockey on Saturday in Charlottetown. more »
Neil Macdonald: How serious is Obama about curbing the drone surge?: In a key speech this week, the U.S. president set out a host of supposed new safeguards for America's controversial practice of remote-controlled rough justice. But as Neil Macdonald writes, the underlying rationale for drone use has not fundamentally changed. more »
Ontario man lost in Australian mountains has survival skills: The sister of an Ontario man who disappeared in Australia's Snowy Mountains nearly two weeks ago says she remains hopeful he will be found, partly because of his training as a Canadian Forces reservist. more »

Must Watch

Latest Politics News Headlines

Toronto mayor's brother says he never dealt drugs

Toronto mayor's brother says he never dealt drugs: The brother of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford has vehemently denied allegations in Saturday's Globe and Mail that he was involved in the illicit drug trade in the 1980s. more »

Ethics probe comes with limits, federal watchdog says: As the federal ethics commissioner readies for a third look at Prime Minister Stephen Harper's former chief of staff Nigel Wright, Mary Dawson is reminding Canadians her office can only look so far. more »
PM's credibility at stake in growing Senate expenses crisis: With the prime minister's credibility at stake in a growing political crisis, has Stephen Harper done enough to explain his former chief of staff's $90,000 cheque to Senator Mike Duffy? Listen to CBC Radio's The House with Evan Solomon here. more »
Wallin may be forced to repay thousands in travel expenses: Pamela Wallin, the Senator from Saskatchewan, was back in the news this week, refusing to tell CBC News if she had repaid any travel expense money. more »
B.C. election proved campaigns matter more than ever: The surprising majority win by Premier Christy Clark in this month's B.C. election showed that campaigns matter, especially in the last days leading to election day. And for the pollsters, it was strike three, writes the CBC's Bob Weiers. more »

More Headlines »

The National

The House

Harper's credibility at stake in growing Senate expenses crisis May. 25, 2013 2:21 PM This week on The House, Conservative MP Michelle Rempel and Liberal Senator James Cowan on the Senate expenses scandal. Former chief of staffs Keith Beardsley and David McLaughlin on Nigel Wright's $90,000 gift to Senator Mike Duffy. Plus, Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall on his plea to abolish the Senate. All that and much more!