Paul Dewar fined $7,000 by regulator over election campaign robocalls

OTTAWA – A New Democrat member of Parliament has been fined by Canada’s telecommunications regulator over robocalls made during the last election campaign.

Paul Dewar was fined $7,000 by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission as part of what it calls a wide-ranging investigation.

The CRTC says Dewar co-operated with its investigators and paid the fine as part of a settlement agreement.

Dewar is the member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre.

In an unrelated investigation, the firm Strategic Communications Inc. was also fined, and agreed to pay a $10,000 penalty for similar violations.

The CRTC says that in future it expects all candidates running political office, as well as telemarketers, to refrain from making unsolicited robocalls during election campaigns.