NB Liquor CEO cleared of conflict

A Court of Queen's Bench judge has cleared Dana Clendenning, the head of NB Liquor and a close friend of Premier Shawn Graham, ofconflict allegations.

Clendenning did breach minor parts of the New Brunswick Conflict of Interest Act, Justice Thomas Riordon found.

But the breaches were not serious, he stated in his 101-page decision, dismissing the complaint filed by Clendenning's former business associate.

Fredericton businessman Barry O'Donnell alleged Clendenning, a former executive director of the New Brunswick Liberal Party, had promised to get him government grants for his call-centre business in return for a monthly fee.

When the grants didn't materialize, O'Donnell accused Clendenning of being in a conflict of interest for getting paid as a consultant-lobbyist after being appointed president and CEO of the Crown corporation in 2006.

New Brunswick's conflict law says the head of a Crown corporation cannot "carry on business other than as a head of a Crown corporation" unless it has been cleared by the judge who oversees the legislation.

A two-day conflict-of-interest hearing was held in Fredericton last summer. Riordon reserved judgment on July 8.

Disclosure documentfiled

In his recent decision, the judge said Clendenning disclosed his business interests to the province's conflict commissioner, as required, and was told there was no problem.

And while Clendenning's company billed O'Donnell after the NB Liquor appointment, it was for work done previously, Riordon ruled.

The judge did fault Clendenning, however, for what he considers two minor breaches of the province's conflict law forgetting to include some information on his conflict disclosure form, and failing to file it on time.

Riordonalso questioned why Clendenning increased the fee he was charging O'Donnell from $2,500 a month to $4,000 the same month the Liberals took power.

Clendenning denies he was paid to influence his Liberal friends. He testified that the money was for advising O'Donnell about a call centre he had sold to him in March 2005.

Riordon said he couldn't find any explanation for the timing of the fee hike, but he doesn't think it's a coincidence.

O'Donnell had told the court Clendenning promised to line up as much as $5 million in government grants for him and he believed him, he said, describing Clendenning as "a big fish in the little pond of New Brunswick politics."

Premier Shawn Graham said Monday that the consulting commissionspaid to Clendenning were OK with him because Clendenning wasn't making much money in his party job.

"So he had to keep his other work activities in place because he was pretty much working at that time at next to minimal salary for the party," Graham said.