Income...Trust?

Inconsistent-Date: Thursday Jan 19
Incidental-Date: Wednesday Jan 18
Incommode-Date: Tuesday Jan 17
Innervate -Dates: Saturday Jan 14 and Sunday Jan 15
Innominate-Date: Friday 13, 2006

Alberta Freedom - always quick on the draw - provided this sleepy blogger the info that Judy Wasylycia-Leis has asked the U.S. Security Exchange Commission to look into the income trust scandal in that country.

(Judy you really are my heroine and should start to tailor yourself as NDP leader 'cause your not afraid to call out the big guns - the S.E.C)

I am now amusing in my mind's eye of Cap'n America coming to save us Canadians!

I must have been pretty sleepy because I commented on AB's blog that a "scuttlebutt" was announced on a website called Stocksource but it is actually Stockhouse brought to you by some fancy investigative footwork by CTV's business news journalists. The story is here

Stockhouse also has a U.S. website which looks almost exactly like the Canadian site but with American news, obviously.

For those who are as confused about what income trusts are as I am, you can go to this site to get some basics on Canadian trusts.

What I learned is that there are different types of income trusts, some in the energy sector referred to as Royal trusts and those in real estate referred to as REITS.

The REITS caught my attention because the National Post had an article on September 20, '05 titled 'Paul Martin owes wife money' and list the various Liberals who have mortgages or loans outstanding.

Three Liberals caught my attention but two of them more.

Public Works Minister Scott Brison was listed as having jointly held mortgages with RBC Financial Group for rental income properties in Halifax.

Why this seems interesting is because of this Globe & Mail table of top income trusts in Canada, which lists Summit Real Estate Investment Trust in Halifax as a top income trust and some chartered banks were musing before Goodale's announcement about converting some of their business lines into trusts.

Not sure if RBC was one of them.

The most interesting of them all is Northern Development Minister Ethel Blondin-Andrew who has a loan and a co-signed loan with Peace Hills Trust Co.

Peace Hills is a Cree Native Trust whose registered administrator is the Indian Pension Plan Funding Program of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada.

Seems to me this appears as a conflict of interest having a federal Minister taking out a loan that is administered by the federal government. It would also appear that she has privy information about what development is on the table for energy research - in which Royal trust companies would be keen to be aware of.

Lastly, there is Tony Valeri, Liberal House Leader - who has a joint mortgage and a mortgage on a recreational property. This is most likely a cottage but his name caught my attention because his was brought up in the list of "who knew" in the income trust affair.

Innominate-Date: Valeri sold property to Liberal supporter who got big loans from Economic Development Canada - "Export Development Canada provides Canadian exporters with financing, insurance and bonding services as well as foreign market expertise."