MacKay campaign boasts about using ministerial influence to funnel money to MacKay's riding

An email sent by the MacKay campaign to his supporters bragged that the Conservative leadership candidate used his ministerial influence to bring investment to Nova Scotia and his former riding of Central Nova.

In an email that was sent by MacKay’s campaign team to his email subscribers, two Maritime supporters said that "Peter MacKay delivered for our province during his ten years as a Cabinet Minister."

"As leader and prime minister, Peter will continue to deliver for Nova Scotia," they added.

As a result of all this, some questions may be raised over whether MacKay engaged in pork barreling: the use of government funds designed to please voters in a politician’s home constituency.

This was similarly corroborated by Ryan Sharpe, who serves as the president of Central Nova’s riding association, who tweeted that MacKay “brought half a billion dollars in funding to Central Nova as MP."

"Nova Scotia will boom with MacKay as PM," added Sharpe.

Ryan Sharpe did not respond to The Post Millennial’s request for a comment.

Speaking to The Post Millennial, Aaron Wudrick of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation said that "'bringing home the bacon' is not a good measure of the effectiveness of any MP or cabinet minister."

"Tax dollars should be spent according to the highest priorities, not used as a slush fund to be scooped up by the most influential MPs," he added.

This is not the first time Peter MacKay has been in hot water over the use of taxpayer money. In 2010, MacKay got a government search-and-rescue helicopter to pick him up from a personal fishing trip.

Peter MacKay’s campaign team did not respond to The Post Millennial’s request for a comment.