Pages tagged “accountability”

  • Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole announces his plan to restore accountability to the federal government

    Quebec City, QC – Today, the Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives, announced that Canada’s Conservatives will pass an Anti-Corruption Act to greatly strengthen federal legislation on ethics, lobbying, and transparency. “Canada’s Recovery Plan will punish ethical violations by politicians and clean up the mess in Ottawa,” said O’Toole. “Canada’s Conservatives will introduce tougher ethics laws, prevent cover-ups, and ensure that lobbying is properly regulated.” Canada’s Conservatives will pass an Anti-Corruption Act to: Ensure there are monetary penalties for any violation of the Conflict of Interest Act. Justin Trudeau and Bill Morneau were both found to have behaved unethically but faced no penalties for their conflicts of interest. Increase fines for ethical violations from a maximum of $500 to a maximum of $50,000 to deter unethical behaviour. Ensure cabinet confidence can no longer be used to shield government insiders from criminal investigation. Cabinet confidence is meant to ensure good government, not shield illegal behaviour. Avoid a repeat of the SNC-Lavalin scandal by requiring all meetings by corporations and organizations to be reported, and ban lobbying on a matter where the entity is the subject of a criminal proceeding under that matter. Prevent Members of Parliament from collecting speaking fees. “In a democracy, nobody should be able to use their connections to get out of facing prosecution if they’re accused of breaking the law,” said O’Toole. “That’s why we will clean up entitlement, and restore ethics to government. There’s only one choice to secure accountability – Canada’s Conservatives.”
    August 18, 2021

  • Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole pledges pandemic response public inquiry

     

    Ottawa, ON – The Hon. Erin O’Toole, Leader of Canada’s Conservatives and the Official Opposition, issued the following statement:
     
    “Last spring, when it was clear that vaccines would be the key tool to turn the page in the crisis, Justin Trudeau dropped the ball completely.
     
    “He turned to China, of all countries, to partner with on the making of a vaccine. It was the worst in a series of bad decisions and it is why we are lagging the developed world today.
     
    “We’re still scrambling to catch up. It’s a national disgrace, especially in a country as strong and prosperous as Canada.
     
    “It all belongs to the past. What matters is the future. What matters is that this never, ever happens again.
     
    “Last month, Canada marked a National Day of Observance for those lost to this pandemic, but to truly honour their memory, we must pledge to learn from the mistakes made and improve our resilience and readiness as a country.
     
    “Our attention should be on getting the country back on its feet.
     
    “But when the pandemic is over, we need answers, we need to know what worked and what didn’t. We need complete transparency and accountability.
     
    “A Conservative government will call a public inquiry to examine every aspect of the government’s pandemic response. We also call on the government to appoint a special monitor from the Office of the Auditor General to track the pandemic response in real time to ensure that valuable ‘lessons learned’ are captured for future emergency readiness.
     
    “The inquiry will ensure that all lessons learned from the crisis are publicly aired and learnings can immediately be adopted. Canada must be better prepared for future threats. We cannot afford to once again fail to keep Canadians safe.
     
    “To secure the future, we must learn from the past.”

    April 06, 2021

  • Auditor General of Canada Confirms Investigation into the Liberal Government’s Infrastructure Plan

    Luc Berthold, Conservative Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Communities, issued the following statement after receiving confirmation from the Office of the Auditor General of Canada that they will conduct an audit of the Liberal government’s Investing in Canada Plan:
     
    “Yesterday, I was pleased to receive a letter from Sylvain Ricard, the Interim Auditor General of Canada, confirming that his office will conduct an audit of the Liberals’ Investing in Canada Plan. Last month, Conservatives passed a motion in the House of Commons calling on the Auditor General to investigate the Liberals’ $186.7 billion infrastructure plan, given their lack of transparency and accountability to Canadians.
     
    “The Liberals’ record on infrastructure is abysmal. In 2015, Justin Trudeau promised to run small, temporary deficits in order to invest in infrastructure that would grow the economy, but Canadians now know that was not true. Multiple reports from the Parliamentary Budget Officer have also shown what lengths the Liberals will go to hide how their announced infrastructure funding has actually been used.
     
    “I am pleased that the Auditor General has respected the will of Parliament and agreed to conduct this important audit, which Liberal Members of Parliament tried to block. Canada’s Conservatives will continue to use our strengthened Opposition to ensure that the government is transparent and accountable to Canadians.”

    February 14, 2020