Liberals raise more questions about Peter Penashue’s election spending

OTTAWA – Interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae is raising more questions about donations made to the campaign of Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Peter Penashue during the last federal election.

Rae has asked the commissioner of Elections Canada to investigate five donations that came from staff at the corporate headquarters of Pennecon Ltd.

The Liberal leader says he wants Canadians to be assured that the donations came from the personal funds of the donors and not from the company or from any other source, both of which are prohibited under the Canada Elections Act.

Rae wrote to the commissioner earlier this week to request a formal look into what he calls spending irregularities by Penashue’s campaign in the riding of Labrador during the 2011 election.

Penashue has blamed rookie mistakes and says he’s working with Elections Canada after spending thousands of dollars more than the legal limit in the campaign.

His former campaign manager has apologized to Elections Canada for mistakes and missing paperwork.