OTTAWA—The federal New Democrats have returned advertising revenue from controversial union sponsorship at a Vancouver policy convention, but the number of dollars at stake will remain a secret for another month.

Elections Canada said earlier this year the NDP had violated political financing laws by accepting an unspecified amount in sponsorships from unions at the convention in June 2011, saying those sponsorships fall under the rules that ban donations from unions and corporations.

“I wish to confirm that it is the position of Elections Canada that sponsorships of political events constitute contributions that are subject to the rules set out in the Canada Elections Act, including the rules regarding the inadmissibility of certain contributors and contribution limits,” François Bernier, deputy chief electoral officer, wrote in a letter to the Conservative Party of Canada on June 1.

The letter also said the NDP had “taken the required steps” to be in compliance with the law.

The Conservatives, who had filed a formal complaint to Elections Canada last August over union logos appearing at events such as a dinner featuring the late Jack Layton and Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter, criticized the NDP for refusing to disclose how much money they had to pay back, if any, or to whom.

NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair repeatedly refused to divulge the figure when a Star reporter asked him about it at a June 21 news conference, saying only that the party was not in any dispute with the elections watchdog.

“We are in continued conformity with the law and we will remain in continued conformity with the law,” Mulcair said at the time.

The secret figure was expected to be revealed in the NDP’s latest quarterly financial report to Elections Canada, which was due Monday night, but the section on returned contributions was left blank.

A senior party official now says that is because the amount of money obtained in union sponsorships was counted as “other revenue” and was returned under that same label.

“They weren’t contributions. That’s why they’re not going to show up there,” Nathan Rotman, national director for the party, said on Tuesday.

“We went through a long detailed thing with Elections Canada and went through all of the different advertising (revenues) and they are happy with what we returned,” Rotman said.

Rotman said the returned amount will show up in the 2011 annual financial report from the NDP — now expected to be filed Aug. 30 after Elections Canada granted the party an extension after missing the statutory deadline.

Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre (Nepean–Carleton), who has been critical of the NDP’s silence on the issue when responding to accusations of secrecy from the government side, said both the party and Elections Canada could be more transparent.

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“I’m waiting to see from either of those two entities on how much illegal money was accepted and how much was repaid and whether there was any additional penalty imposed,” Poilievre said Tuesday.

“If the NDP takes money from a union and calls it advertising, they would be transforming the entire electoral finance system to allow any corporate interests to buy political influence through so-called advertising,” he said. “What’s next? Are they going to let a tobacco company be the lead sponsor for their 2013 convention?”