Four cabinet ministers yesterday said they are eyeing the federal Liberal leadership in the first Party contest of its kind in 12 years. Any ministers who run face a six-figure entry fee and loss of a cabinet bonus with car allowance.

“That’s something I have been thinking of for a long time,” said Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne. “But you know, we’ll see.”

“I am seriously considering a bid for the leadership but we need to know the rules,” said Champagne. “Obviously there will be a time to reflect on that as the Party is putting the rules together.”

The Liberal Party in its last federal leadership contest in 2013 charged candidates a $75,000 entry fee and limited campaign spending at $950,000. New Democrats in their last national contest in 2017 charged a $30,000 fee and capped candidates’ spending at $1.5 million each. The Conservative Party in a 2022 leadership race charged a $250,000 fee and limited campaign expenses to $7 million.