Mary Ng, Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development holds a joint press conference in Ottawa, on Friday, Dec. 2, 2022. International Trade Minister Mary Ng says she hopes Canadians will see the "sincerity" in her efforts to make amends after breaking the country's ethics laws. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA – International Trade Minister Mary Ng says she hopes Canadians will see the “sincerity” in her efforts to make amends after breaking the country’s ethics rules.
Ng is testifying before a parliamentary committee which is probing the details of her violation, which was outlined by the federal ethics commissioner.
Mario Dion ruled last December that Ng broke a section of the Conflict of Interest Act by failing to recuse herself from the decision her office made in spring 2020 to hire the public relations firm Pomp and Circumstance, co-founded by the minister’s friend Amanda Alvaro.
The minister apologized after Dion initially released his report and repeated her apology to MPs on the committee this morning.
Ng says she admits she made a mistake by failing to recuse herself and told MPs that she has since arranged for the ethics commissioner to deliver training.
The minister says she knows she must “work even harder” in light of her ethics violation and hopes Canadians will see her “sincerity.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 10, 2023.
