VANCOUVER—The mayor of Vancouver will write a letter urging provincial officials to begin a public inquiry into money laundering — but without reference to Quebec’s Charbonneau inquiry, to which some experts have drawn comparisons.

On Wednesday, city council voted unanimously on a motion put forward by Councillor Christine Boyle, to endorse a call for the province to launch an inquiry into money laundering and its connections to real estate, organized crime and the opiod crisis, following a review expected in March on money laundering in real estate commissioned by B.C.’s attorney general.

However, the motion was passed with an amendment to strike mention of the Charbonneau inquiry from the terms of reference.

Mayor Kennedy Stewart said in council that he would happily write the letter to the province calling for the inquiry but expressed concerns about references to the Charbonneau inquiry in Boyle’s original motion, suggesting that Vancouver did not have the same issues at the municipal level that were found in Quebec.

The Charbonneau Commission inquiry revealed a pervasive and complex web of political corruption and links to organized crime in the awarding of government contracts.

“At the core of the Quebec scandal is that mayors, councillors and unions were working with organized crime,” he said.

“I don’t have evidence that there is that level of corruption in city hall.”

Boyle said the motion was an opportunity for the city to take the lead on pushing for an inquiry, and questioned whether the forthcoming report on real estate by Peter German will effect any real change.

“I don’t hear many people say the German report is going to solve this issue for us,” she said. “I think leadership means not waiting until other people have made a decision.”

Richmond city council voted earlier this week to also urge the province to launch a public inquiry, with Victoria expected to vote on the issue Thursday.

On Monday, Boyle invited a high-profile Quebec lawyer involved in the Charbonneau Commission and a former B.C. Crown prosecutor to join her at a news conference on why B.C. needs a public inquiry in addition to government-commissioned reports. Boyle said an inquiry needs to examine how money laundering contributes to Vancouver’s high cost of housing and the opiod crisis.

An earlier report on casinos commissioned by the provincial government identified long-running problems with poor enforcement that enabled hundreds of millions — possibly billions — of dirty dollars to be laundered through Lower Mainland casinos.

With files from Jen St. Denis.

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