Parliamentary Budget Officer Fighting Back

When Stephen Harper was campaigning in 2006, he promised a federal accountability act. This was his chance to push the Conservatives into office by differentiating themselves from the Liberal Party, who were in the midst of the sponsorship scandal.

Upon taking office, the Harper minority did introduce a Federal Accountability Act. Unfortunately, since then they’ve taken every opportunity to ignore it. The act provides protection for whistleblowers, but when a public servant like Richard Colvin, actually does bring a problem forward, they are generally called a liar and they have their reputation ruined.

The act created a five year cooling off period for political staff before they could become lobbyists, but that rule has been broken.

To improve accountability, Harper also created the office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer, which has since been blocked at every turn. He has also seen his budget cut.

Kevin Page has been trying to get specifics on the planned $5.2 billion in cuts the government is planning over the next three years since before Bill C-38, the budget implementation bill, was introduced. Page has now hired a constitutional lawyer to find the numbers so that he can do his own analysis.

Page told The Hill Times: “Without this information there is no accountability whatsoever, because people don’t know what’s going on inside departments.”

He has also pointed out that without this information, MPs are being forced to vote on budget changes without being told what those changes really mean.

Page had been told by the Clerk of the Privy Council, Wayne Wouters, that the information could not be released to him because public service unions had to be informed first. Those same unions have since informed the government that they have no problem with the numbers being released to Page, so long as no personal information about employees is released.

More than 26,000 jobs are being cut throughout the public service, though the government claims most of these will be through attrition. Employees are being told whether they are ‘affected,’ meaning they will have to compete for their job against other affected workers, or simply laid off.

The Opposition has been fighting on Page’s behalf, calling for the government to be found in contempt of Parliament for not releasing the numbers. This is the same situation that caused the government to fall in 2011.

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Photo Credit: Leadnow Canada

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Shan D.

12:11AM PDT on Jun 22, 2012

"Conservatives are destroying the world so why are the people still voting against their own interest??? Seems the more Americanized the world becomes the more corrupt it becomes, how sad." - Luvenia V. -

Luvenia, Stephen Harper is applying Alberta-style dirty politics to this way of governing. The Conservative party has been in power in the province of Alberta for OVER 40 YEARS. That's TWO GENERATIONS that have grown up never knowing anything else. And it's not like we had much different before that - the Social Credit party is just like the current Conservatives, but with religion and openly racist attitudes thrown in. We were governed by *that* for 36 YEARS before the Conservatives took over. That's a couple more generations that grew up never knowing what it's like to have a Liberal or NDP provincial government, or a populace willing to toss one party completely if they screw up.

Now Stephen Harper is applying dirty U.S. style political tricks like the robocall stuff. And since HE appointed the current Governor-General, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for the GG to do the right thing and make an election happen.

June 22
send a green star

Michael O.

5:11AM PDT on Jun 20, 2012

Kevin Page has proven to be much more adept at providing accurate budgetary information than Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who in my opinion, is the worst finance minister in Canadian history. Flaherty inherited a nearly $10 billion budgetary surplus from the previous Liberal government in 2006, and within 3 years, turned it into the largest budgetary deficit ever ($50 billion).

I wouldn't let Flaherty run a lemonaid stand out of my toolshed, much less act as finance minister.

What I don't get is why the Conservatives have been given a free pass in proclaiming themselves as the best party to manage Canada during economic turmoil. They have clearly shown that they are not.

June 20
send a green star

Past Member .

4:54AM PDT on Jun 20, 2012

Kevin Page has been one of the very few people in Parliament that has stood up against all that is wrong in this Government

` without his keen and honest ways no one would know just how much of a cheat our leader and his band of no minds are to Canadians. I hope everyone who reads this will sent a thank you email to Mr Page and let him no we support him and are grateful for his concern over the Democracy of Canada, This Government has so much to learn from a Man like Mr Page.As a matter of fact I for one would Vote for such a man as Kevin Page.Please it only takes a moment to sent Mr Page an email to say thank you, and lets not forget who he is up against! I know he would appreciate our support.

Vicky P.

2:54PM PDT on Jun 19, 2012

The cons are destroying Canada :/

June 19
send a green star

Luvenia V.

9:19AM PDT on Jun 19, 2012

Conservatives are destroying the world so why are the people still voting against their own interest??? Seems the more Americanized the world becomes the more corrupt it becomes, how sad.

Martin K.

9:07AM PDT on Jun 19, 2012

I hope that in about 3 years the Conservative Party will be cut to 2 Members of parliament just like it happened some years ago with the then Progressive Conservatives Party. Canadians are progressives and do not want a Republican style Conservative government in Canada.
It is the fault of the 39 % of Canadian voters who didn't bother to vote, and the Canadian Parliamentary system of first past the post. We need to get proportional representation to really represent what type of government Canadians want. Of course that won't happen under Harper. Again why is it that so called Christians, with their "high morals", are behaving like anti- Christians like those "Christian" Republicans in the USA?

Sue H.

8:58AM PDT on Jun 19, 2012

"Get Up, Stand Up" Mr. Page!