Health Minister Tony Clement Must Divest or Resign

The Canadian Health Coalition has joined the Liberal Opposition in calling on Health Minister Tony Clement to either completely divest his shares in Prudential Chem Inc. or resign.
In a press release, the non-partisan coalition of health care workers and health advocacy groups from across Canada called Minister Clement’s 25 per cent stake in the Toronto-based pharmaceutical company “a serious conflict of interest”.

“The appointment of Tony Clement as Minister of Health calls into question the judgment of Prime Minister [Stephen] Harper who promised to raise the federal government to a higher standard of ethics and accountability,” the release said.

Mr. Clement, who earned the nickname Two Tier Tony while at Queen’s Park for his ringing endorsement of a two-tier health system, has refused to sell his 25 per cent stake in Prudential Chem, despite that fact that his ministry regulates the drug approval process.
Opposition MPs said this week Mr. Clement is in a conflict of interest and demanded that he immediately sell his shares.

“Instead of focusing on reducing wait times in this country, establishing a mental health commission, implementing catastrophic drug coverage or ensuring that Aboriginal Canadians and seniors receive the very best in health care, this minister has been looking after his personal investment portfolio,” said Liberal Health Critic Ruby Dhalla.
In addition to this controversy, Mr. Clement is also embroiled in a scandal involving the awarding of a $25,000 sole-sourced contract to his long-time friend and aide Gordon Haugh.
Mr. Haugh served as Mr. Clement’s press secretary at the Ontario Ministry of Health, with an annualized contract of over $300,000 or $25,000 a month. He then went on to serve as the Minister’s director of communications during Mr. Clement’s failed provincial and federal leadership bids, and as tour director to then Canadian Alliance Leader Stockwell Day in the 2000 federal election.

Today, Mr. Haugh is the general manager of the Canadian International Pharmacists Association (CIPA), an industry association that represents Canadian pharmacies that sell internationally, including internet pharmacies, which are regulated by Mr. Clement’s ministry.
“This is absolutely scandalous. Tony Clement refuses to sell his stake in pharmaceutical giant Prudential Chem Inc., and now he’s awarding untendered contracts to his close friend who heads a pharmaceutical association,” Ms. Dhalla said.

Ms. Dhalla said Mr. Clement’s decision to award a sole-sourced contract to a personal friend with a long history of feeding at the public trough is a shameful abuse of office and taxpayer dollars, made all the more scandalous by Mr. Haugh’s industry ties.

“Mr. Haugh must think he has won the lottery by working for Mr. Clement,” Ms. Dhalla added. “His disregard for the taxpayer and his blatant show of patronage and favouritism flies in the face of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s mantra of outlawing influence peddling.”