Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is facing charges that parts of his 1995 doctoral dissertation at Oxford University were copied without proper reference. The complaints, reported by the National Post, come just days before Canadians head to the polls on 28 April, where Carney would be fighting to keep his PM chair.
An assessment of Carney’s essay, The Dynamic Advantage of Opposition, by three scientific experts reportedly uncovered at least 10 situations of possible theft. The National Post claimed Carney copied passages from many sources, including economics Michael E Porter, Jeremy C Stein, and HS Shin, without proper identification.
One of the cases flagged involves a nearly identical passing to Porter’s 1990 book, The Competitive Advantage of Nations. Carney wrote,” First, government action is restrict international competition and deliberately support local profits”. This was almost similar to the author’s initial writing. Specialists argued that even modest wording changes without apparent citation count as plagiarism.
Geoffrey Sigalet, a professor at the University of British Columbia who deals with scientific misconduct situations, said,” He’s simply immediately repeating without passages. That’s plagiarism”.
Campaign and intellectual reply
Carney’s strategy pushed up against the statements, issuing a statement from his former Oxford officer, teacher Margaret Meyer. She dismissed the charges, saying,” I see no proof of theft in the essay”.
” Mark’s labor was thoroughly investigated and approved by a university commission”. Meyer even argued that identical language is typical when referencing academic options.
Oxford University identifies copying as “presenting work or tips from another resource as your own without complete acknowledgment”, Fox News reported. Another doctor, speaking privately to the National Post, suggested that Carney’s essay fits this description.
Isabella Orozco-Madison, a spokeswoman for Carney’s plan, labelled the claims an “irresponsible mischaracterisation” of his intellectual work.
Social fallout
The schedule of the allegations may prove difficult for Carney, who has been a popular figure in global finance, recently leading the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. Critics have frequently accused him of being part of the global aristocracy, and the theft says may fuel those critiques.
Past theft scandals have forced high-profile figures to move over or have their levels revoked. Last month, Harvard University’s leader, Claudine Gay, resigned amid similar charges, though she denied any wrongdoing.
