WINNIPEG — A Manitoba Progressive Conservative has been stripped of his critic duties in the wake of a report from the province’s ethics commissioner.

Jeff Wharton is one of three Tories who were found by the ethics commissioner this week to have violated the conflict of interest law in pushing for a silica sand mine.

The report says Wharton, former premier Heather Stefanson and former deputy premier Cliff Cullen tried to get approval for the project after the Tories lost the 2023 election but before the incoming NDP government was sworn in.

Wharton has apologized and said he accepts the report’s findings, which include thousands of dollars in fines.

Progressive Conservative Leader Obby Khan says Wharton will remain in caucus but has been removed as critic for business, mining, trade and job creation.

Stefanson and Cullen have left politics, and Premier Wab Kinew says there are still many unanswered questions about what the former Tory government did.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 22, 2025.

Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press