Jean Charest denies illegal party financing, links to SNC-Lavalin

Former Quebec premier JeanCharestis denying a report linking him to a politicalfundraisingscheme with engineering giantSNC-Lavalinin the year before he took office.

Charest, who was premier from 2003 to 2012, says he has never participated in any illegal party financing activity.

Charestmade the comments in a statement following a Radio-Canada report Friday that said Quebec's anti-corruption police unit is looking into whether he was involved in a financing operation withSNC-Lavalinin 2002.

According to Radio-Canada,Charestand a Quebec Liberal Party fundraiser approachedSNC-Lavalin'schairman as part of an effort to raise $50,000 from the firm's employees.

Radio-Canada says it wasn't able to determine whether the Liberals ever got the money.SNC-Lavalindenies any wrongdoing.

Charestsays the report reconstructs events of 12 years ago in a "tendentious" manner.

The Quebec Liberals were among several political parties to have been accused of illegal financing during testimony at the province'sCharbonneauinquiry into corruption.

Read Radio-Canada's story (in French) here.