The Harper government introduced its so-called accountability legislation yesterday but is likely to face some tough debate in the weeks ahead. The government's objective is to have the bill adopted before the summer recess.
First-off, the PM has once again demonstrated his lack of respect/disdain for the institutions of Parliament and the constitution by moving to abolish the office of the Senate's ethics commissioner. As he has in the past demonstrated an absence of respect for the Charter of Rights and the Supreme Court, he now shows that he fails to recognise that the House of Commons and Senate are separate and equal. It is unlikely that the Senate will take kindly to the potential loss of its autonomy, so expect a tough debate in the upper house. Some pundits have suggested the PM wants just such a confrontation so that, when he goes to the electorate next, he can say the "Liberal Senate" blocked the accountability act. Maybe so.
The bill itself is a recipe for duplication and excessive bureaucracy. It establishes multiple officers of Parliament to oversee and review the work of the civil service (procurement, cost-accounting, etc). That would be the same civil service the PM said, a few weeks ago, is innately honest and hard working. But I guess it cannot be trusted without a new bureaucracy to keep tabs on it.
The PM also promised, during the election campaign, to expand the Access to Information law in conjunction with the accountability bill. He has reneged on that commitment and sent the issue to committee where it can be talked-out and die from ennui.
Additionally damaging is the proposal to block political staff and civil servants from lobbying the government for a period of five years after any employment in the public service. This will further dissuade qualified and capable Canadians from taking a job in the public service. In contrast, the PM has left untouched lobbyists who run for Parliament and end-up making decisions to benefit their previous employers. The case of a defense procurement industry lobbyist appointed to be Harper's defence minister is too obvious to warrant further comment.
