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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Canada's foreign minister resigns | Canada's foreign minister resigns |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Canada's foreign minister has resigned after he admitted leaving classified documents in an unsafe place. | Canada's foreign minister has resigned after he admitted leaving classified documents in an unsafe place. |
| Maxime Bernier's resignation has been accepted by Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper. | Maxime Bernier's resignation has been accepted by Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper. |
| He said Canada's International Trade Minister, David Emerson, would serve as interim foreign affairs minister. | He said Canada's International Trade Minister, David Emerson, would serve as interim foreign affairs minister. |
| Mr Bernier had been criticised in recent weeks amid allegations that a former girlfriend had relationships with men connected to organized crime. | Mr Bernier had been criticised in recent weeks amid allegations that a former girlfriend had relationships with men connected to organized crime. |
| "Minister Bernier has learned and informed me that he left classified government documents in a non-secure location," said Mr Harper. | "Minister Bernier has learned and informed me that he left classified government documents in a non-secure location," said Mr Harper. |
| "This is a serious error. (He) has accepted his responsibilities in offering to resign." | "This is a serious error. (He) has accepted his responsibilities in offering to resign." |
| TV disclosures? | |
| The announcement came hours before an interview with Mr Bernier's former girlfriend, Julie Couillard, was due to be shown on Canadian television. | The announcement came hours before an interview with Mr Bernier's former girlfriend, Julie Couillard, was due to be shown on Canadian television. |
| It is a very serious mistake regardless of who the minister is, regardless of personal life Prime Minister Stephen Harper | |
| Ms Couillard, 38, who had attended Mr Bernier's 2007 swearing-in as foreign minister, had officially been designated as his "spouse" so she could join him on official trips overseas. | |
| But the couple reportedly broke up some months ago. | |
| Mr Harper denied the resignation had any connection to the "minister's private life". | |
| "This is about one thing and that is a failure to uphold expected standards on government documents," he said. | |
| "It is a very serious mistake regardless of who the minister is, regardless of personal life, to leave classified documents in an unsecured location." | |
| Mr Bernier, who was appointed to the role last August, is the first minister to resign from Mr Harper's cabinet under a cloud since the conservatives c came to power in January 2006 elections. |