MP George Chahal has paid a $500 fine after taking an opponent’s pamphlet from a front door and replacing it with his own during last year’s election.
The Liberal MP for Calgary Skyview was captured on a doorbell camera removing the Conservative flyer while he was going door to door as a candidate.
In a statement on Twitter Tuesday, the MP apologized for his mistake and said he had paid a $500 administrative penalty levied by the elections watchdog.
The Elections Commissioner investigated the incident after the footage emerged of the MP and in a statement Tuesday said a financial penalty had been levied.
“The (penalty) was in the amount of $500 and is intended to address violations related to preventing or impairing the transmission of election advertising,” a spokeswoman said.
The Elections Canada Act prohibits people from preventing election advertising from being communicated to the public. The Commissioner is responsible for ensuring compliance with the act.
On Twitter, Chahal said he accepted and had already paid the fine.
“I want to again apologize and acknowledge my mistake,” Chahal said.
The Elections Commissioner’s office said it had issued the penalty to Chahal, and not Elections Canada, the body which ran the election, as stated in his tweet.
As one of only two Liberals elected in Alberta Chahal was considered as a possible cabinet contender. However he was passed over in favour of Edmonton MP Randy Boissonnault, who was named the minister of tourism and associate minister of finance.
Chahal disclosed over the weekend that anti-vaccine protesters had gathered outside his house in Calgary waving placards while he was celebrating his wife’s birthday. The MP wrote on Twitter that the protesters were trying to “intimidate” him and his family.