Winnipeg Free Press Newspaper Archives Aug 15 2015, Page 5

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - August 15, 2015, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A5 WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, SATURDAY, AUGUST 15, 2015 A 5 * dining room sale up to 20% off . F U R N I T U R E I N S P I R A T I ON DE S I G N 693 Taylor Avenue Winnipeg, MB, R3M 3T8. 204.925.2226 www. kesay. ca Mon- Wed 10- 6 Thu 10- 7 Fri- Sat 10- 6 Sun 12- 5 * see store for details sale ends sept 15 th . “ BREATHTAKING PIECE” “ SUPERNATURAL ENTERTAINMENT!” The Toronto Star Opens September 10th Tickets and information available at cavalia. net • 1.866.999.8111 and UNDER THE WHITE BIG TOP ON KENASTON BOULEVARD A DIVISION OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WINNIPEG INC. MORE SHOWS ADDED DUE TO HIGH DEMAND! For more information, please visit theforks. com/ railside. PUBLIC UPDATE at THE FORKS The Forks Renewal Corp. and The City of Winnipeg invite you to attend a public update on the rail side lands and parcel 4 project. THE FORKS MARKET AUGUST 20 5– 8PM | AUGUST 22 11AM– 2PM RAIL SIDE LANDS & PARCEL 4 bus .. carpool .. bike .. walk OTTAWA — In June 2013, Prime Minister Stephen Harper told the House of Commons his former chief of staff, Nigel Wright, was the only one who knew Wright had given $ 90,000 to Mike Duffy. “ Those were his decisions,” Harper said. “ They were not communicated to me or to members of my office.” New evidence disclosed at Duffy’s trial this week suggests otherwise. Here’s a look at some of the key people around Harper who, it turns out, were aware of the secret Duffy repayment plan: . Nigel Wright: Harper’s former chief of staff, now an executive in London, England, at private equity firm Onex Corp. Wright was the central figure in talks between Duffy and the Prime Minister’s Office — talks that culminated in the arrangement that saw Wright foot the bill for Duffy’s $ 90,000 in disputed Senate expenses. . Ray Novak: Harper’s current chief of staff and a senior campaign director, as well as one of the people in the party and the government who is closest to the prime minister. Novak was copied on emails that explicitly stated both that Duffy was unwilling to repay his own expenses and that Wright — Novak’s boss at the time — was planning to do it. Through a spokesman, Novak denied Thursday he’d been aware Wright had paid. Novak also participated in part of a key conference call with Duffy’s lawyer in March 2013, shortly before the payment was made. . Irving Gerstein: Conservative senator and longtime chairman of the Conservative Fund of Canada. Wright asked Gerstein if the party would foot the bill for Duffy’s expenses and legal fees, which at the time were $ 32,000. Gerstein told the RCMP he was prepared to consider it. The plan fell apart when the total soared to $ 90,000. Wright also informed Gerstein he had personally borne the cost of repayment. . Chris Woodcock: Former director of issues management inside the Prime Minister’s Office, now an executive at Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. Woodcock was an active participant in the discussions about Duffy’s repayment, penning an early document called Scenario for Repayment. He was told about the plan to cover Duffy’s expenses and was also informed Wright wound up paying. . Benjamin Perrin: Associate law professor at the University of British Columbia and former PMO lawyer. Perrin was a key point of contact as the office negotiated with Duffy’s former lawyer Janice Payne on having Duffy tell the public he had repaid. Perrin was told Wright would repay the expenses and was on a conference call with Wright, Payne and Novak a few days beforehand. . Stephen Lecce: Deputy director of communications inside the PMO and currently a campaign worker inside the Conservative war room. Lecce was copied on the initial scenario for Duffy that included a plan to keep the senator “ whole” by having the party repay the disputed expenses. Lecce also helped to develop the media plan for Duffy that had him declare publicly in media interviews he was going to repay his expenses. — The Canadian Press A growing list of those in the know A_ 05_ Aug- 15- 15_ FP_ 01. indd A5 8/ 14/ 15 8: 48: 16 PM