OTTAWA — The House of Commons’ committee probing the government’s ill-fated deal with WE Charity will hear this morning from a charity watchdog organization.
Charity Intelligence Canada has been referenced multiple times during finance committee hearings about the WE affair, but has yet to testify in the committee’s probe of the Canada Student Service Grant program.
Charity Intelligence has previously raised red flags about WE’s practices, which has garnered rebukes from WE and its co-founders, Craig and Marc Kielburger, who testified before the committee last week.
The controversy around the grant program has raised questions about WE’s complex structure and accounting mechanisms, its use of high-profile corporate sponsors and celebrity endorsements and its work culture.
Meanwhile, opposition parties are hoping the imminent release of government documents will shed some light on how an organization with close ties to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was awarded a deal to administer the $912-million student program.
The government has until Saturday to table with the finance committee all memos, briefing notes, correspondence and other documents related to the now-cancelled agreement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 6, 2020.
The Canadian Press
