Legal counsel for the B.C. Lottery Corporation has reached an agreement with former BCLC president and CEO Michael Graydon that resulted in him paying back money he received after leaving to work for a private casino company.
Under the agreement, the BCLC has received full repayment in the amount of $55,171.20, which includes total net salary and holdback Graydon received from Feb. 4 to March 31.
The BCLC did not request repayment of $30,960 in vacation pay, noting Graydon is legally entitled to those funds.
Until this announcement, which was made on Thursday, Aug. 21, NDP Leader John Horgan had said the B.C. Liberal government should have taken Graydon to court to retrieve bonus money paid to him after he was found to be in a conflict of interest.
A report commissioned by the province found Graydon was in a conflict of interest when he negotiated with a private gaming company for two months before informing the BCLC board he was leaving.
The province’s gaming and enforcement branch also investigated Graydon’s activities in his new role with a company that wants to develop a $500-million casino next to B.C. Place Stadium in downtown Vancouver.
Kamloops businessman and former Social Credit cabinet minister Bud Smith joined the BCLC board in May 2012 and was appointed chairman in August 2013.
He has declined to comment on the story, only issuing a statement on the BCLC site, in which he said, in part, “The board made decisions on the handling of Mr. Graydon’s resignation based on the information he provided to us at the time.
“The review shows that the information provided by Mr. Graydon to the board and BCLC was incomplete and/or inaccurate.”
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