Emails contradict defence
Opposition MLA Steven Myers compares e-gaming emails and government’s legal defence
A newly released email conversation between former finance minister Wes Sheridan and a lobbyist appear to directly contradict statements in the defense government filed in court against the 2015 e-gaming lawsuit.
During question period Wednesday, Opposition MLA Steven Myers grilled government on the two documents, repeatedly accusing government of presenting false information in its court defense.
The emails, obtained through freedom of information, are between Sheridan and Chris LeClair, who served as former premier Robert Ghiz’s chief of staff before leaving government and working with McInnes Cooper on the province’s egaming venture.
The September 2012 exchange shows LeClair asking Sheridan to consider a request by an individual/company that wanted to work with the province on processing “gaming payments.”
The name of the company or individual LeClair was lobbying for was redacted from the documents.
Sheridan tells LeClair he had been informed by then-Innovation Minister Allen Roach that Innovation P.E.I. already had a pending agreement for similar work that it must honour first, but promises to pass along a timeline of information about this agreement to LeClair.
The agreement in question was a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that Innovation P.E.I. signed with a subsidiary company of Capital Markets Technologies (CMT) called Trinity Bay Technologies for exclusive negotiations to create the financial services platform on P.E.I.
LeClair then pressed Sheridan for more information, saying he was aware of conversations between thendeputy minister Melissa MacEachern and Simplex, which was also working with CMT on the MOU.
LeClair wanted to know why the province couldn’t entertain a second proposal, which was “only seeking a provincial opinion on whether the business activity of fulfilling gaming payments would be permitted on P.E.I.”
Sheridan then explains to LeClair that Roach informed him the province could not
entertain pitches from other companies because of the exclusive MOU.
Sheridan then says he was trying to get more details about this agreement.
LeClair presses again, reiterating his point that “if Simplex is ‘allowed’ to operate… there should not be an issue with another company choosing to operate.”
During question period Wednesday, Myers compared these emails to paragraphs within the government’s defence against CMT’s e-gaming lawsuit, filed in the Supreme Court of P.E.I. in 2015.
Government’s statement of defense says LeClair “had no knowledge of the MOU or any of its terms,” and “specifically denies making any proposal on his own, or together with Sheridan, to Innovation P.E.I. which recommended a company that was better than the
plaintiffs or Simplex.”
The government’s statement of defense also says Sheridan “specifically denied” any knowledge of the MOU.
“The surviving emails prove that otherwise,” Myers said in question period Wednesday.
“Premier, why is the truth opposite to the defence you filed?”
Myers says the emails also show Roach passed details of the confidential MOU to Sheridan and LeClair.
Myers called on Roach to resign.
“The finance minister testified at his interview with the auditor (general) that he did not know any of the details around the MOU. He claimed he knew it existed but didn’t know any of the specifics… the emails say otherwise,” Myers said Wednesday.
“Why is misrepresenting
the truth to the auditor general not serious enough to warrant the resignation of this minister?”
Roach says he has no intention of resigning and stands by all statements he has made about e-gaming and the MOU in the house and to the auditor general.
Premier Wade MacLauchlan noted the court threw out the 2015 e-gaming lawsuit, calling it an “abuse of the processes of the court.”
He accused Myers of trying to “help the litigants” in a second e-gaming lawsuit, filed in March.
Government has not yet filed its defense for the new e-gaming suit, which is seeking damages of $50 million from the province.