Canadian senator charged over cheque from PM's chief of staff

Canadian police have laid a raft of criminal charges against a member of the country's Senate who was once a close political ally of Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

The 31 charges laid against Senator Mike Duffy on Thursday are the latest development in a long-running scandal that has hurt support for Harper's right-leaning Conservative government ahead of an election scheduled for October 2015.

Harper, who took power in 2006 promising to increase accountability, came under attack from opposition parties last year after it emerged that his wealthy chief of staff, Nigel Wright, had secretly paid Duffy a cheque for C$90,000 (HK$649,000) to cover expenses that Duffy had agreed to repay.

The Senate, the appointed upper house of Canada's Parliament, ruled Duffy had claimed the expenses improperly.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police assistant commissioner Gilles Michaud said Duffy was suspected of corruptly obtaining, or trying to obtain, the C$90,000 from Wright.

"Mr Duffy has been charged with one count each of bribery of a judicial officer, frauds on the government and breach of trust," Michaud said. "Today's charges are the result of a careful examination of the facts."

The majority of the Mounties' charges against Duffy relate to living and travel expenses that he allegedly claimed even though he was not entitled to do so.