Tory Party Claims Government’s Green Fund Documents Are Still Being Withheld, Predicts Continued House Gridlock
Conservatives have revealed that new information from the House of Commons law clerk suggests that the government is still withholding documents related to the federal green fund. They insist that normal business in the House cannot resume until all the unredacted documents are provided.
Tory House Leader Andrew Scheer received a letter on Nov. 18 from law clerk Michel Bédard, indicating that government entities are still issuing redacted documents or withholding certain pages.
Speaking to reporters in Ottawa on Nov. 19, Scheer stated, “They’re literally keeping some documents away from the RCMP and hiding, covering up, and redacting many of these documents. This goes against the original House order.”
In June, the House mandated the production of documents related to the federal green fund, Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), for submission to the RCMP.
This directive came after the auditor general discovered conflicts of interest at SDTC, with board members approving funds for their own companies. Subsequently, Ottawa has been in the process of dissolving SDTC and transferring its programs to the National Research Council.
However, the government has not fully complied with the House’s order to provide all unredacted documents pertaining to SDTC. This prompted House Speaker Greg Fergus to allow a question of privilege motion from Scheer, which has been on the agenda continuously, delaying other regular business.
Agreeing with Fergus, Scheer tabled a motion to proceed with the referral.
When asked about their future course of action, Scheer noted that the government’s non-compliance is forcing votes on federal expenditures to be delayed.
He emphasized, “The speaker has determined that no other business can proceed until this order is followed. The Trudeau Liberals are deliberately not adhering to this order, so the responsibility lies with them.”
The Liberal government cites concerns about charter rights in their hesitance to hand over unredacted documents to the RCMP, arguing that it may violate privacy rights by the police accessing such information.
Liberal House Leader Karina Gould stated on Nov. 19, “The government has provided nearly 29,000 pages of documents regarding the SDTC issue to the House of Commons. We have done so in a manner compliant with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to safeguard Canadians’ rights and to protect police independence and the separation of powers in the country.”
She added, “It’s time for Conservatives to cease their partisan procedural games and allow us to resume the work of this institution.”
In July, RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme expressed similar privacy concerns, though he later confirmed in October that his organization had received some documents from the House production order, and an investigation is ongoing.
