Citizens’ Representative, Bradley Moss, has released a report under Section 44 of the Citizens’ Representative Act, regarding the misrepresentation of evidence in an investigation of the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation, undertaken by the Citizens’ Representative from 2015-2017.

The report finds that an intimate business relationship existed between the (then) CEO and an adult member of the CEO’s family at the time the Citizens’ Representative commenced his investigation of conflict of interest allegations against the former CEO in November of 2015.

The report highlights the concern that over 600 pages of material evidence about the business relationship, in the form of emails required to be disclosed by law, were not disclosed to the Office of the Citizens’ Representative.

The report declares a misconduct on behalf of the former CEO, pursuant to Section 30(2) of the Citizens’ Representative Act, and calls on the House of Assembly to increase fines for obstruction of the Citizens’ Representative from $500-$10,000, in line with fines contained in whistleblower legislation already under the purview of the Citizens’ Representative.

Further, the report calls on the House of Assembly to insert defined discoverability language into the Citizens’ Representative Act, to allow the office more time to detect and initiate prosecution of future cases of suspected obstruction and evidence suppression.

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Media contact
Jocelyn Walsh
Office of the Citizens’ Representative
709-729-7647
citrep@gov.nl.ca