As members of Congress head out on horseback for the Thanksgiving holiday, there won’t be much to say about what they’ve accomplished so far this fall. Almost half of the session has been spent on the Liberals refusing to hand over a trove of documents related to a massive spending scandal.
Wednesday was the eighth day of debate over opposition document requests related to the now-defunct Sustainable Development Technology Canada Agency, a standoff that has led to stalled government legislation and cross-party condemnation. are.
The Conservative Party has dubbed the SDTC scandal the “green slush fund” and claims there is partisan involvement in where the money goes, but the Liberal Party has completely denied this claim.
But no one is denying that there were problems. In 2022, whistleblowers alleged that government funds flowing through SDTC were flowing to organizations with direct ties to management. This revelation led to an internal government investigation and the SDTC’s activities were suspended. The Federal Ethics Commission found the chairman had broken rules, and the Auditor General launched an investigation, finding “serious deficiencies” in governance and the management of public funds meant to strengthen green technology. concluded.
The debate in the House of Commons centers on what happens next. The opposition party, which has a majority of MPs, passed a motion calling for all relevant documents to be handed over to the RCMP for a potential criminal investigation. The Liberals don’t want to release them all.
In response, Speaker Greg Fergus ruled that MPs’ rights had been violated and launched a motion that is being debated. If passed, the issue will go to Commons Committee. Until that vote is taken, most other House issues have been sidelined as the privilege issue is considered a top priority.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poièvre, who was allowed to speak again on Tuesday after a one-day ban, asserted his party’s position during Question Period on Wednesday: Other employers would voluntarily turn over all evidence to police if their employees stole it. What is the Prime Minister hiding? ”
In response, Government House of Commons Leader Karina Gould responded that the people should be worried about Poièvre. “If the police requested that information, obviously that information would be handed over because that’s the proper judicial process,” she said.
“But when it’s Parliament that does that, this is where Canadians should be concerned, because when he’s pursuing the rights of other Canadians, his political vendetta is against all Canadians.” It’s only a matter of time before it’s targeted at people’s rights.”
Although similar requests for documents have been made in the past, this request is unique in that it requires the documents to be turned over to the RCMP, who may use the documents obtained in this way for any purpose. He has expressed reservations about certain things. investigation. The Liberals also argued that MPs’ right to possess documents does not extend to handing them over to others, and that the documents being requested were irrelevant.
To which the Conservatives respond: “Hand them over and let the RCMP decide.”
If the records are not handed over, the Liberals may be able to break the deadlock by introducing a motion to end debate. Ms. Gould wouldn’t say Wednesday if she wanted to.
The Liberals will need support from either the Bloc Quebecois or the New Democratic Party to pass the motion.
On Wednesday, Bullock said he would not vote in favor of such a motion now. Leader Yves-François Blanchet is sticking to his pledge not to support the Liberals unless legislation protecting supply management and increasing federal benefits for seniors aged 65 to 74 is passed by October 29. are.
“I think both the Liberals and the Conservatives, whatever they say, are pretty happy with the situation, because they seem to be benefiting from the fact that Parliament is not functioning,” he said Wednesday. spoke.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh also showed little support for ending the stalemate. “The ball is the government’s court,” he said.
The end of this privilege debate does not mean business as usual. Another person is waiting in the wings.
Mr. Fergus also ruled that Tourism Minister Randy Boissonneau’s former business partner violated his parliamentary privilege by refusing to provide all information about their business relationship, and that There will be a discussion about.