Former television news reporter Richard Madan is collecting a salary of $387,000 a year as Manitoba’s trade representative in Washington, D.C., the premier’s office has revealed.
The salary is comparable to money spent by other provinces on trade offices or third-party lobby firms, the premier’s office said Thursday.
But the Opposition Progressive Conservatives said Madan’s wage is out of line for someone with no trade background.
“Paying someone almost $400,000 — to someone with no experience in that — is preposterous,” Tory Leader Obby Khan said.
“The prime minister of Canada makes $405,000 … the premier and the mayor (of Winnipeg) combined are making about what this person is making.”
Premier Wab Kinew’s office said Madan has delivered results in his short time in the position.
“After nearly a decade working as a journalist in Washington, D.C., Richard Madan was able to hit the ground running as Manitoba’s senior representative to the United States with an established network of politicians, journalists, academics and other thought leaders in the U.S. Capitol,” a statement from Kinew’s office reads.
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The statement says Madan has met with Manitoba business and agriculture groups, set up an office inside the Canadian embassy and is organizing an upcoming “advocacy day,” where U.S. lawmakers will learn about Manitoba’s contributions to supply chains and Arctic defence.
Madan was hired in June, and the government initially did not disclose his salary. The only figure released at the time was $800,000 for total office costs in the fiscal year that started in April.
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That amount could include costs such as office rent, travel expenses and salaries of other staff.
Madan worked for media outlets such as CTV and CBC before being named to the trade post. At the time of his hiring, he said he did not have a trade background but came armed with connections in Washington and skills in building and maintaining relationships.
Khan said Wednesday he had yet to notice any concrete results for Manitoba businesses from Madan’s work.
The Ontario government pays its trade representative $364,000 a year, plus housing subsidies and other costs, and also hires a Washington lobby firm, Kinew’s office said.
Khan said Ontario’s representative, David Paterson, has an extensive business background as a former senior executive at General Motors Canada and BlackBerry, among others.
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