OTTAWA — Canada’s ethics watchdog is investigating federal fisheries minister Dominic LeBlanc’s decision to award a lucrative fishing licence to a group in Atlantic Canada with ties to the Liberals and LeBlanc’s own family. The president of NunatuKavut, one of Five Nations’ Indigenous partners, is also a former Liberal MP. The Arctic surf clam licence has been a subject of controversy since the government decided last year to create a new licence and award one quarter of the existing quota to a partnership that included multiple Indigenous communities. The clams are a popular sushi ingredient in Asia and, in 2016, Clearwater’s revenue from surf clam sales was nearly $92 million. “Please take next steps with (the proponent) and ensure that additional Indigenous communities are quickly confirmed,” he wrote in a handwritten note as part of his decision.

Source: National Post May 18, 2018 22:18 UTC