Is it time for MPs to be audited?

Another attempt to open up the books of our members of parliament, and another brick wall.

Earlier this year, Senator Percy Downe tabled a motion calling on the Senate to ask Auditor General Michael Ferguson “to conduct a comprehensive audit of House of Commons expenses, including Members’ expenses.”

The motion was probably a stunt in response to the Auditor General’s audit of senator expenses. It would not have compelled Ferguson to take any action. It would just, as Downe suggested at the time, nudge the House to address public concerns about politicians’ expenses.

But, according to the Hill Times Tim Naumetz, the Tories are signalling that it will oppose the motion.

"[Conservative] Sen. Elizabeth Marshall argued that Sen. Down’s motion is too sweeping, and attempts to set conditions on how and when Mr. Ferguson’s office would conduct an audit, which Sen. Marshall said would infringe on the independence of the auditor general," Naumetz wrote.

"Despite a suggestion from Newfoundland and Labrador Liberal Senator George Baker that Sen. Down’s motion could be amended to eliminate the objectionable sentences, Sen. Marshall said she would oppose the motion regardless."

Yahoo Canada News sent an email to Sen. Claude Carignan, the government leader in the senate, asking if his party will indeed vote against the motion and if so, why.

As of press time, his office hadn’t responded.

Gregory Thomas of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation suggests that it’s “shortsighted” of the Tory senators to block Downe’s motion.

"We’ve recently seen in the case of former London, Ontario mayor Joe Fontana that it took nine years for Fontana’s fraud as an MP against the House of Commons to come to light. That’s because there is no regular oversight from the Auditor General on how MPs manage taxpayer dollars in their own offices," Thomas told Yahoo Canada News.

"Fontana’s crime came to light because of a leak from an accountant in London Ontario. Fontana managed to fool the staff of the House of Commons. How many other Fontana-type cases are out there? Nobody knows, and until we get an audit of MP spending, nobody will ever know."

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The auditor general can only audit MP office expenses at the invite of parliament.

MPs from all political parties have taken steps, in recent months, to become more transparent, but Conservative MPs have been consistently resistant to full and thorough review of their travel and other perks.

In March, Green Party leader Elizabeth May’s voice was drowned out by a chorus of Conservative “No”s in the House of Commons when she tried to introduce a motion similar to Downe’s.

[ Related: Former PM Kim Campbell’s bold proposal for gender parity in Parliament ]

And while,parliament hasn’t invited the AG, the current and past AG have both tried to invite themselves but to no avail.

In 2006, then-AG Sheila Fraser said “I think Parliament’s auditor should audit Parliament.”

And, in 2013, Ferguson called for an independent review at a House committee meeting.

"I believe that independent audits and some form of oversight would strengthen members’ accountability and enhance the public’s confidence in the governance mechanisms of the House of Commons," Ferguson said citing expense scandals in the U.K. and Nova Scotia.

For the time being, however, Ferguson will have to focus his efforts on the senate. He continues his audit into their expenses and his findings could be made public as early as December.

(Photo Courtesy of The Canadian Press)

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