Inside Politics

UPDATED - LeakWatch: So, why can't Sheila Fraser just release the final version of the G8 report ...

by Kady O'Malley Posted: April 11, 2011 12:50 PM Last Updated: April 11, 2011 3:18 PM
... given that all four parties have demanded/requested that she do so? 

Simple: Because as an officer of parliament, the auditor general reports to parliament, and at the moment, we don't have one of those, what with the government having fallen eighteen days ago, thus plunging us into an election that, despite what some talking points you might have heard, was, in fact, necessary as the government of the day no longer held the confidence of the House of Commons. 

Anyway, as soon as the 41st parliament has been duly elected and the House of Commons convened for its inaugural session, the AG will be able to table her findings, but until then, there is no process or procedural loophole whereby the report in question -- in whole or in part -- can be made public. Not even Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II -- or, alternately, her Canadian designate, Governor General David Johnston -- can circumvent the rules without forcing the AG to be in contempt of the very parliament that she serves. 

Which, by the way, is exactly what the Conservative Party reminded Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff when he demanded that she do so with this very same report a week or so back -- going so far as to chide him for demonstrating such contempt for the sanctity of parliament, in fact -- so I'm not sure why the CPC War Room is now pretending that all it takes is all-party-leader agreement, and presto! No parliament necessary. Technically, the leaders in questions aren't even parliamentarians at the moment, for heaven's sakes. Honestly, it's enough to try to the patience of a procedural saint. (Speaking of which, has anyone checked on Law Clerk Rob Walsh lately?) 


Anyway, I'll update this post with any further developments, but as far as I can tell, we're at an impasse here as the seemingly irresistible force of electoral politics is stopped short by the quietly immovable object that is parliamentary law. Which is, it's fair to say, rather fitting, given the myriad events that have brought us to this particular point. 

UPDATE - Here's the official statement from the Office of the Auditor General: 

We will not release or comment on our audit report on the G8 Legacy Infrastructure Fund. Under the Auditor General Act, we can only present reports when Parliament is sitting. The Office of the Audit General of Canada remains the custodian of its reports until they are presented to the Speaker of the House of Commons for tabling.

I strongly caution the public to wait until our final report on the G8 Legacy Infrastructure Fund has been tabled in Parliament and made public.

We work very hard to keep our reports confidential before they are tabled. There are indications that an early draft of this report may have been released by someone outside our Office. Our normal audit process requires that we share early drafts of our reports with government departments. We do this so they can validate the facts on which our conclusions are based, provide any additional relevant information, and so they can prepare responses to our recommendations. Sometimes during the process of fact validation, additional information is brought to our attention. Only the final report that is tabled in Parliament represents our audit findings and conclusions.



And just for fun, here's a collection of past quotes from the very same auditor general on the premature release of reports outside parliament, as sent to me by the Conservative war room last week when it was (rightly) chiding the Liberals for demanding that the prime minister do just that with the very same report that they are now urging Fraser to make public. (Thanks, guys! They're even more timely the second time around!): 

"Our reports are tabled only when Parliament is sitting."   (Auditor General Sheila Fraser, Testimony in front of Library of Parliament Committee, April 23, 2009)

 

"We can only release a report if it is tabled in Parliament, if Parliament is sitting. That is very clear." (Auditor General Sheila Fraser, Testimony in front of Library of Parliament Committee, April 23, 2009)

 

The same email also included the following excerpt from an "all-party report" of the Library of Parliament committee on the decision by the parliamentary budget officer to release a report on the cost of the Afghanistan mission during the 2008 election: 

 

The practice of not presenting reports to Parliament when Parliament is not in session is a longstanding tradition on Parliament Hill. This was confirmed by Allan Darling when he appeared before the Committee:

Parliament itself has established protocols to apply to tabling of documents, etc., during the period of an election. These apply to people like the Auditor General, for example...All those things go into suspension. It doesn't mean they won't be tabled; they're just in suspension." 

Tags: auditor general sheila fraser, blackberry jungle, g8/20: the aftermath, really not that complicated a question