Quebec Premier Jean CharestRyan Remiorz
Premier Jean Charest says he will launch a public inquiry into the way judges are chosen in Quebec after a former cabinet minister accused the government of serious ethics violations.
Mr. Charest's announcement Tuesday came a day after ex-justice minister Marc Bellemare said Liberal bagmen influenced the selection of judges.
"I think it's important that we be able to address this issue of the integrity of the justice system in Quebec," he told a news conference.
"I want to get to the bottom of this."
On Monday, Mr. Bellemare dropped a bombshell, saying he was pressured on three occasions to name a judge requested by influential donors during his tenure as justice minister.
Mr. Bellmare insists he confronted the Premier twice - in the fall of 2003 and the spring of 2004 - when pressured by influential financiers to make appointments, including judgeships.
The former minister also alleged that stacks of cash were forked over by construction company bosses and funnelled into party coffers.
Mr. Charest again denied the allegations and reiterated he would send his ex-minister a lawyer's letter demanding an apology and retraction of the allegations.
Still, the Premier said his most pressing concerns are the allegations against the judicial system and the government, not his personal differences with Mr. Bellemare.
"It ain't about me," Mr. Charest said.
"Yes, I will ask Mr. Bellemare to retract and I'll determine how we'll deal with that later, but that's not my priority."