OTTAWA - Convicted fraudster Raymond Lavigne has resigned from the Senate, effective immediately.
Lavigne trades in his $132,000 annual salary for a parliamentary pension that the Canadian Taxpayer's Federation estimates could hit $79,000 a year.
The Liberal-appointed senator, who was booted from the party's caucus almost four years ago, was convicted of fraud and breach of trust earlier this month.
The Senate was about to begin debate on how to suspend Lavigne when he resigned the seat he's held since 2002.
The former Liberal MP's conviction relates to improper travel claims totalling at least $10,000 and the use of his Senate staff for hundreds of hours of private labour on his property.
Lavigne, 65, has not yet been sentenced and faces a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison.
He was first elected to the House of Commons in 1993, and sat as a Liberal until Jean Chretien appointed Lavigne to the Senate in March 2002 to make room for candidate Liza Frulla in his Montreal-area riding.
Derek Fildebrandt of the Canadian Taxpayer's Federation says Senate rules should be changed so that senators convicted of work-related offences don't collect their pensions.
"They should be put on notice that if convicted, the taxpayer portion of their pension should be withdrawn," said Fildebrandt.
