Public funds should not go to political parties: Minister
A Simon Fraser University official spent $2,045 of university money to attend seven B.C. Liberal Party fundraisers, the Vancouver Sun has revealed. The official in question, director of government relations Wilf Hurd, is a former Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly himself.
Don MacLachlan, an SFU spokesperson, told the Vancouver Sun that the university had no policy on such expenses until now, but he promised that such donations will not be allowed in the future.
Liberal Minister of Advanced Education Naomi Yamamoto said that such donations are wrong. “I don’t think taxpayer dollars or public funds should be going to political parties,” she said.
It’s not just B.C. where university officials have used public money to attend political events. The University of Lethbridge, Athabasca University, Portage College and Grande Prairie Regional College have all illegally donated to the Alberta Progressive Conservatives, CBC News reports.