Now the target of two investigations, Quebec Economy Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon said on Wednesday he would resign his position should he become harmful to the government.
Fitzgibbon is accused of cronyism following the appointment of his friend and business partner Guy LeBlanc to head up Investissement Quebec, the financial arm of the government.
Fitzgibbon was a shareholder and director of a vegetable protein company along with LeBlanc. The minister sold his stake in the company last fall.
On Wednesday Fitzgibbon said that had he known it was complicated to own companies while serving in government he would have stayed in the business world.
The Ethics Commissioner announced an investigation would be conducted into Fitzgibbon’s conduct on Tuesday. Another investigation was already underway regarding his interventions in the aerospace industry while he held shares in Heroux-Devtek, a major player in that field.
