Sam Hamad avoids ethics sanctions, but has dealings questioned

Former cabinet minister Sam Hamadfailed to uphold the values of the National Assembly in his dealings with a disgraced party fundraiser,Quebec's ethics commissioner ruled on Thursday.

But the commissioner,Jacques Saint-Laurent, also decided thatHamad shouldn'tface anysanctions for his actions.

• Sam Hamad denies breaking law amid outcry over email exchange with Marc-Yvan Ct

It was Hamad himself who asked for the ethics investigation, following a Radio-Canada report that revealed an email exchange withMarc-Yvan Ct, a fundraiser at the time for the Quebec Liberals and vice president of environmental technology companyPremier Tech.

Ctis currently facing fraud and conspiracy charges in aseparate matter involving Hamad's former cabinet colleague,Nathalie Normandeau.

The emails appeared to show that between 2010 and 2012, while Hamad was a minister in Jean Charest's government, he provided government information to Ct and lobbied for his company to receive government funding.

Charest'scabinet ultimately decided to boostPremier Tech'sfunding from $7.5 million to $8.5 million.

• Sam Hamad received donations from firm tied to Marc-Yvan Ct

'Imprudent' dealings

Echoing findings ofa report by the auditor general last week, the ethics commissioner found there was "no motivation" for the $1 million funding increase.

"In his actions, [Hamad] did not contribute to maintaining the population's confidence in the members of the National Assembly,"Saint-Laurent wrote in his report.

The commissioner added that he "hesitated for a long time" before finally deciding not to sanction Hamad.

Saint-Laurent explained his decision by saying there was a lack of proof that Hamad waspersonallyinvolved in the decision to award more funding to PremierTech.

"One thing is certain, [Hamad] didn't spare any effort when arguing forPremierTech,"Saint-Laurent wrote. He goes on to say that Hamad was "imprudent" in his dealings withCt.

2down, 1to go

This is the second of three investigations into Hamad's dealings withCt andPremierTech. And for the second time, Hamad has avoided sanctions.

• Sam Hamad did nothing wrong in Premier Tech case, auditor general finds

The auditor general's report released last week pointed out there was little evidence to supportthe government's decision to boost its aid forPremierTech.

At the same time, the report found there was no evidence that Hamad did anything wrong. Hamad still faces an investigation by Quebec's chief electoral officer.

Hamad stepped down as Premier Philippe Couillard'sTreasury Board presidentin April, pending the results of the ethics investigation.

But on Thursday, Couillardrefused to say whether Hamad would rejoin cabinet. The premier, nevertheless, put a positive spin on the results of the ethics investigation.

"We have to remember the conclusion; it's not anodyne that the commissioner indicated there was neither blame nor sanction," Couillard told reporters in Quebec City.

"That said, I'm not minimizing the issue. I'm placing it in perspective."

In a statement released Thursday, Hamad described the previous months as among the most difficult in his life. He also struck a defiant tone.

"I felt unjustly attacked even though I always executedmy ministerial functions with honesty, devotion and with concern for the interests of Quebec," his statement said.

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