The federal department has hired an accounting firm to determine the merits of allegations that projects with close ties to the agency’s board and management got preferential treatment for funding. A group of former employees brought the allegations forward, the Globe reported, citing confidential sources. (The Globe and Mail)

Talking point: Sustainable Development Technology Canada, a federally funded agency, provides early-stage financing to startups to help them commercialize cleantech and has disbursed more than $1.5 billion since 2001. Cleantech was a major focus of the federal government’s March budget. SDTC told the Globe it is cooperating with the investigation and has launched its own. SDTC chair Annette Verschuren, whose company NRStor received $2.3-million of SDTC funding between 2018 and 2021, said she reported all potential conflicts during the vetting process and received clearance from the ethics commissioner, and said the allegations are “without merit.”