15 May 2010

Oh, dear. Not a good response, Mr. Comartin

On the Auditor General's request for an invitation to audit MPs' expenses, NDP MP Joe Comartin responded with these two gems: i) "This type of examination should not be done by a public servant" and ii) "It's the electorate who makes those decisions as to whether we spend our money properly."

Comartin must have had tongue firmly in cheek when he said that. How else to explain the inconsistency of the two statements?

For members of the electorate to know whether MPs spend their money properly, MPs' expenses must be made, er, known to them.

Ergo, either MPs should make their expenses public for all to see or they should extend that invitation to Canada's Auditor General for her to have at 'em - not that lack of invitation will stop her.

Oh, and regarding MPs wanting expenses sealed to keep lawsuits quiet, per Liberal MP Paul Szabo, well I'd like an answer to this question:

Why should MPs be the only public employers to get off the hook?

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