Ethics Commissioner Mary Dawson will formally investigate complaints over the use of the Conservative party logo and individual names of members of Parliament on cheques that were used to promote government stimulus projects.
"She's going ahead with an investigation," a spokeswoman for commissioner Mary Dawson's office said Tuesday.
CTV's Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife said Tuesday afternoon that the ethics commissioner will look into whether government regulations were violated when the Conservative logo appeared on cheques for stimulus projects, giving the impression that the money was coming from the party and not the government.
Opposition MPs have filed a number of complaints over the cheques and Dawson said in a statement she expects there to be about 50 complaints in total.
Liberal MP David McGuinty said his party is considering pushing for the public service commissioner, the auditor general and Elections Canada to investigate the matter.
Prime Minister's Office spokesperson Dimitri Soudas said on Â鶹´«Ã½ Channel's Power Play that the use of the Tory logo on the cheques was "inappropriate."
"It will not happen again," Soudas said.
But Soudas said the government has "no concern" over individual MPs having their name on oversized cheques announcing federal stimulus projects.
"These members of Parliament represent their constituents," Soudas said. "The government sees no problem with the federal identity program and members of Parliament working hard and ultimately delivering these results in their own region."
Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff has implicated 55 Tories in the "dubious strategy" of putting their names on the novelty stimulus cheques.
"Conservative members have tried to funnel $600,000 of taxpayers' money to their ridings as if this money belonged to the Conservative party," he charged Tuesday in the House of Commons.
He said it looks like the economic stimulus plan is "a plan to help Conservatives."
Last week, Liberal MPs lodged dozens of complaints with the ethics commissioner over the oversized novelty cheques.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper admitted the party logos should not have been on the cheques.
"The use of a partisan logo on a government announcement is not correct," he said in the House of Commons. "We endeavour not to do that."
