Sunday, May 28, 2023
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Guest
Sheila Fraser
As far as "official" Ottawa goes, perhaps no one is more respected than Sheila Fraser.
As Canada's Auditor General, it's been her job to hold the federal government accountable, to make sure it's running efficiently and that your money is being spent properly. And depending on what her department finds, it can rattle a government pretty good.
Remember the sponsorship scandal in 2004? Fraser's department blew the lid off it. Revealing that 100 million dollars in federal money went to Liberal friendly ad agencies, for little or no work. That led to the 'Gomery Inquiry' and the ultimate downfall of the governing Liberals. After 12 years in power, they lost the 2006 election, and have been in freefall ever since.
Fraser has also criticized overspending on health care and exposed holes in national security, especially when it comes to threat of a major attack. Now, she's set to release a new report - this one is on Ottawa's spending for the G8 and G20 summits.
That blew up during the election campaign, when two drafts of the report were leaked, raising questions about whether or not the Conservatives had misled parliament. Fraser though, was quick to caution everyone - wait for her final report, which is due out in early June. Although, she won't be tabling it - Fraser's 10-year mandate ended on May 30th.
She gave her last public speech May 25th, in which she warned the government that they faced tough choices in terms of either cutting services or raising taxes, and pointed to the "truly shocking" lack of improvement in First Nations services. The nation's conscience to the end of her political career.
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