Four-thirty on a Friday afternoon – the perfect time for a government press release that they want to bury. And lo and behold, on schedule comes the news that the government will be carrying on with the Sikorsky helicopter contract and begin decommissioning the Sea Kings next year. Err, except that those Sikorsky Cyclones won’t be fully operational until, oh, 2018 or so, and the current models that they expect our Forces to train on don’t have shielded electronics, meaning that a ship’s radar can knock them out. Oops. There was no explanation in the release as to how Sikorsky plans to get over this hurdle (as the shielding will add a lot more weight to the choppers), only that it would come at no extra cost – in fact, they already owe millions in late penalties for the ridiculous botched job that this whole procurement has already turned out to be. The best part of this drama, however? Diane Finley’s press secretary left the office immediately after sending the release, and nobody would give out his cell phone number, meaning that reporters couldn’t get a statement from the minister about this pretty big deal of a release. Because that’s the kind of professionalism we’ve come to expect from this government.
Tag Archives: Auditor General
Roundup: Useless polls make populist noise
A CTV-commissioned poll shows that 69 percent of Canadians don’t think the Senate is useful. (Broken down, the numbers are 34 percent “strongly disagree” and 35 percent “somewhat disagree” with the statement of whether “The Senate of Canada performs a necessary and useful political function.”) The problem with that is that it goes back to the very same issue of asking people a question that they’re not taught anything about. Sure, people have heard about the Senate, but most of what they hear is either a) scandal; or b) distortion, largely arising from scandal as it affects a very small percentage of its membership. Most Canadians, if we’re honest, don’t really know the first thing about the Senate and what it does, and the media hasn’t done a stellar job in covering their good work either, which makes this kind of poll particularly fraught from the get-go. But hey, now we can use a big number to say that populist sentiment doesn’t agree with the constitutionally bound makeup of parliament! One has to wonder if the same kinds of numbers would arise if we asked whether people agreed that their pancreas serves a useful and necessary function in their bodies, or if we’d get the same kind of facile comment of “I don’t know what it does, therefore let’s just get rid of it” that this kind of ridiculous Senate polling results in.
Roundup: Northern Gateway not quite good to go
The National Energy Board has given a conditional approval to the Northern Gateway Pipeline application – and by conditional, they attached 209 conditions to it. There will be additional hurdles with First Nations, as well as the BC government’s own five conditions. In response to the decision, Joe Oliver seems to have toned down his rhetoric around the pipeline proposal, while Harper praises the “rigorous” work of the NEB in this effort. CBC gives you six things to know about the decision. Energy economist Andrew Leach points out that the review is far from a real green light and that it’s not clear that all 209 conditions will be met. Michael Den Tandt counts the many ways in which the pipeline is likely doomed in spite of the NEB decision.
Roundup: No breached ethical walls
Auditors from Deloitte appeared before the Senate’s internal economy committee yesterday morning, and revealed a couple of things – that yes, senior Partner Michael Runia did try calling them, but they didn’t tell him anything, thus preserving their “ethical wall.” Also, their audit operated in a closed system and that there wasn’t any way for there to be any leaks of draft copies. But when the Liberals on the committee tried to move a motion for Runia to appear to explain himself, Conservatives on the committee blocked it, saying that they didn’t have the expertise to conduct an investigation parallel to the RCMP’s. Nor has there been any call for Senator Gerstein to appear to explain himself either. The Liberals will be moving a motion in the full Senate next week to give the committee the mandate to pursue these questions, but we’ll see if there is enough support. Kady O’Malley finds three key points from that testimony, and makes the relevant connections to the Wright testimony in the RCMP ITO. Incidentally, PMO has hired three different law firms to deal with the ClusterDuff file.
QP: Gerstein down the memory hole
It was caucus day, and the Liberals and Conservatives met their new MPs elected in Monday’s by-elections, not that any of them will be sworn in for a couple more weeks. Outside the Chamber, the NDP continued to froth about comments that Justin Trudeau made around hope and fear. When QP got started, Thomas Mulcair asked about the written agreement in the Duffy documents about the Prime Minister publicly declaring his fitness to be a PEI senator. Harper assured him that while some MPs and senators have a secondary residence, it was inappropriate to make some expense claims on some of them. Mulcair wondered if that inclusion in the deal was a coincidence, but Harper said that those who are appointed to the Senate are expected to live up to their expectations and Duffy did not. Mulcair wondered if this declaration was part of the “good to go,” and Harper said that residency was not the issue. Mulcair pressed about what the approval was supposed to be about, but Harper insisted that the documents are clear that it was understood that Duffy would pay his own expenses. Justin Trudeau was up next for the Liberals, and asked about Senator Gerstein’s interference in the Deloitte audit, and once again asked why Gerstein enjoyed Harper’s confidence. Harper avoided the question, and insisted that this was only about Wright and Duffy. Trudeau pressed on the issue, but Harper just repeated his non-answer.
Roundup: The AG has concerns
The Auditor General tabled his fall report yesterday morning, but unlike many a report in the past, it was pretty tame. He did kick the crap out of the audit process for the Safety Management System of our railways, and cast a withering eye on food recall systems, and emergency preparedness on First Nations reserves. He wasn’t particularly kind to the CBSA’s lapses in border security, he noted that farmers face a long wait for emergency assistance, and he was really, really unimpressed with the constant delays in implementing financial controls, but he wasn’t too tough on the shipbuilding contracts, and he generally praised CRA in dealing with tax evasion in Lichtenstein – but they need to be better prepared to deal with an increase in tax-haven cases. (Highlights here).
QP: Detouring to mention the Auditor General
Despite the fact that the Auditor General delivered his fall report earlier this morning, as did the Correctional Investigator, it was unlikely either of those would be mentioned anytime before round three. All three leaders were in the Chamber, and there were ClusterDuff questions to be asked. Thomas Mulcair surprised me by bringing up the report chapter on rail safety first thing, to which Harper insisted that the report showed that the system was working overall. Mulcair brought up the chapter on food safety, but Harper again insisted that it wasn’t an accurate reflection, and then read an outside quote about how great things were. Mulcair demanded that the government listen and act on the AG’s recommendations rather than just saying that they agreed. Harper insisted that they always act on the AG’s recommendations. And then it was back to the ClusterDuff — was anyone else being sanctioned for their activities? Harper said he wasn’t going to interfere with the RCMP investigation, and when Mulcair insisted that others be fired, Harper returned to his line about throwing mud and losing ground. Justin Trudeau asked why Senator Gerstein was in caucus and chief fundraiser if was involved in the Wright affairs. Harper insisted that only two people were under investigation. Trudeau brought up Gerstein’s attempt to influence the Deloitte audit, but Harper ignored that and spoke about an improperly reported gift between Wright and Duffy. Trudeau retorted with a dig about Harper losing 40 percent of his vote share last night before wondering why Harper still trusted Gerstein — but Harper shrugged it off and said that the public doesn’t agree with the Liberals when they protect senators.
Roundup: The AG wants MP oversight
The Auditor General says that there needs to be an independent, non-partisan body to deal with MPs expenses in order for Canadians to be confident that they are being managed. The NDP immediately point out that this is what they have been looking for since the issue of Senate expenses exploded into the public consciousness. I would say that it’s too bad that we are reaching a place where we can no longer treat MPs like grown-ups, and that we need yet more mechanisms to police them.
QP: Paul Calandra, once again
With the Rob Ford sideshow still sucking the oxygen out of the news cycle, and none of the leaders in the House, it was either going to be a quiet QP, or an utter gong show — rarely is it anything in between when the leaders are away. Megan Leslie stated off by asking a question about the relief efforts to the Philippines after the typhoon. Chrisitian Paradis stood up to laud the efforts of the DART, and that the government commitments to relief stand at nearly $40 million. Nycole Turmel was up next, and asked about the expedited immigration for those affected. Costas Menegakis reiterated some of the measures that the government was taking. Turmel and Leslie then returned to the issue of ClusterDuff timelines, but Paul Calandra responded with the usual lines about how the Prime Minister was unaware of what happened. For her final question, Leslie asked about the revelations about Michael Sona being in Aruba when he allegedly bragged about the robocall scheme — which isn’t actually government business — and Calandra didn’t really give an answer in any case. For the Liberals, Ralph Goodale returned to the topics of the staffers in the PMO involved in the ClusterDuff affair, but Paul Calandra told him to repeat the allegations outside of the Chamber. For the final question, Marc Garneau asked about a February 20th email that directed some PMO staff to assist Senator Duffy, and why were they still employed? Calandra insisted that the PM was clear that he wouldn’t have stood for these actions.
Roundup: Another underfunded procurement
As we await the Auditor General’s report, due next week, we hear that he is expected to report that the National Shipbuilding Programme doesn’t have enough money to fulfil its goals. Not that this should surprise us, as the constant delays and rising inflation have driven up the costs. Because this government has clearly done their bit for the procurement file every chance they get.