CPP Investments CEO Mark Machin resigns after travelling to UAE for COVID vaccine

The head of the fund managing Canada Pension Plan investments is the latest highprofile Canadian to draw criticism for their behaviour during the pandemic after he travelled outside the country and received a COVID-19 vaccination despite a government advisory against any nonessential travel.

Mark Machin resigned his position as president and CEO of the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board after disclosing in a memo to staff that he travelled to the United Arab Emirates, where he received a COVID-19 vaccination.

In the memo viewed by The Canadian Press and sent to CPP Investments staff Thursday evening, Machin said that he remains in Dubai with his partner “for many reasons, some of which are deeply personal” and that he followed all travel protocols related to his job.

“This was a very personal trip and was undertaken after careful consideration and consultation,” the memo reads.

CPP Investments didn’t respond to a query asking why Machin travelled or whether the board had approved of the trip in advance as part of the consultation process.

It has not offered any comment on the situation beyond a press release noting

Machin’s resignation after discussions with the board and the resulting appointment of John Graham as CEO.

The federal government’s advisory asking Canadians to avoid all non-essential travel outside the country has been in place for almost a year. This month, Ottawa implemented stricter quarantine measures for those returning from international destinations.

The advisories and measures, however, have not stopped several prominent Canadians from heading abroad or making special trips to secure a vaccine ahead of schedule.

Former Great Canadian Gaming Corp. chief executive Rodney Baker and his wife Ekaterina Baker allegedly chartered a plane to the small community of Beaver Creek, Yukon in January and posed as local motel workers to receive COVID-19 shots at a mobile clinic.

They were ticketed for violating the territory’s Civil Emergency Measures Act, which carries fines of up to $1,000, plus fees.

Great Canadian gaming announced Baker’s departure a few days after the alleged incident.

Incidents such as these have led companies to create policies that require board permission for executives to travel or even removing to locations beyond corporate headquarters, said Richard Leblanc, a professor of governance, law and ethics at York University.

Machin alluded to CPP Investments policies in his message to staff but the fund did not respond to a question about its policies around executive travel.

Executives are closely associated with the brand of an organization even when they’re not at work, so

Leblanc said they have to manage reputational risk for the company and its board of directors at all times.

“You shouldn’t have to say to a CEO, ‘We can’t jump the queue (for the vaccine),’ but certainly, you need to come to the board when you have any non-essential travel requests,” he said.

“That’s not inappropriate because ... you have a succession issue if you have to fire your current CEO and boards don’t want to get caught flatfooted.”

The move to appoint Graham, previously CPP Investment’s global head of credit investments, as chief executive — was made swiftly and on a permanent basis, which Leblanc said shows the fund was well-prepared.

What Machin, who is in his mid-fifties, did isn’t illegal, but is “troubling” because Canada is focusing on vaccinating the most elderly and at risk people first, added Leblanc.

There doesn’t appear to be a compelling reason for Machin to get the vaccine early, said Leblanc.