Daily BrewIs it time for Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath to pull the rug out from scandal-plagued Liberal government?
Despite an ongoing scandal involving the cancellation of two Ontario gas plants and an alleged cover up shaking, to say the least, the province's Liberal government, there are indications that we are no closer to holding them accountable at the polls.
While the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario hammers their drums and calls for the end of Premier Kathleen Wynne's government, the third-placed Ontario NDP still doesn’t seem to be in a rush to force an election.
This despite recently-released court documents that suggest a former chief of staff is being investigation for an alleged breach of trust.
New information released this week suggests David Livingston, the chief of staff for former premier Dalton McGuinty, in being investigated for allegedly attempting to cover up the ongoing gas plant scandal by allowing an outside tech expert access to 24 government computers in order to clear the hard drives ahead of a leadership transition.
The revelation inspired fresh attacks from the political opponents of current Premier Kathleen Wynne. The Ontario Progressive Conservative Party accused Wynne of being directly involved in the growing scandal, and Toronto Coun. Doug Ford sneered that his brother, Mayor Rob Ford, did not want to be associated with a politician at the centre of a police investigation.
Easy for them to say, these are people long-determined to end Wynne's mandate.
But where does Ontario NDP brass stand on an issue that now must surely force an end to its tepid support of the Liberal government?
[ Related: Wynne distances herself from predecessor in wake of new gas plants allegations ]
Leader Andrea Horwath said only in a Friday statement that now is the time for answers from a premier who claims she was unaware of the issue at the heart of the scandal.
"This adds to questions that require explanations about your assertions that you have been in the dark at every stage as one of the most epic scandals and elaborate cover ups in the political history of Ontario unfolded on your watch," Horwath writes in an open letter to Wynne.
She goes on to say that an inquiry must be called immediately, though the hard line taken by others was notably absent in the letter.
There are questions that must be answered. As a first step, in light of these questions and ongoing revelations about a criminal investigation of Liberal attempts to conceal the truth, it is clear that a public inquiry into the cover up must be called immediately and that a special, independent prosecutor from outside the province be appointed to work with the OPP’s anti-rackets squad and ensure there is no scope for any tampering by your government with probes of this scandal. I first issued a call for an independent public inquiry last January. At that time, you insisted it would not be needed. The past year has proven you wrong.
The Ontario NDP have been propping up a minority Liberal government by offering support is passing budgets in exchange for concessions and deals.
It has worked well for the party, which has grown its share of public support and increased the profile of its leader. But Horwath's position has always seemed to be that she would snatch the rug away if and when the government's problems grew out of control.
Is this not out of control enough, or is Horwath simply more reasonable and patient than any politician has a right to be?
[ Related: Ontario MPPs set to get pay increase after opposition blocks salary freeze ]
The gas plant scandal has plagued Ontario's Liberal government for years, since the time of former premier Dalton McGuinty. It stems from a politically-motivated decision to cancel two unpopular gas plant projects, in Oakville and Mississauga, ahead of a tight election. Ontario's auditor general previously determined that the total cost to move the Oakville plant would reach above $1 billion. The Mississauga plant was pegged at $275 million.
More recently, questions were raised after it was learned that Liberal staff deleted emails related to the projects as leadership transitioned from McGuinty to Wynne last year.
Now, those questions include an apparent criminal investigation.
Ontario police documents released this week alleged that Livingston may have given the tech-savvy boyfriend of another staff member access to 24 government computers in order to "wipe clean the hard drives" after McGuinty's resignation.
According to his lawyer, Livingston has been open about his activities. He told the Canadian Press that his client "did nothing wrong and certainly did not break the law as alleged."
Meantime, Wynne has called the latest allegations "very disturbing" and continues to distance herself from the controversy.
"This is not the way a government should operate, this is not the way a premier's office should conduct itself and it is not the way my office operates," she told reporters. "I want to be clear: this individual does not work in my office, nor in my government, nor has he ever worked in my government."
Horwath seems convinced, much like the Ontario PCs, that the scandals of the previous administration also stain Wynne's government. She says the documents contain "new and explosive revelations" that detail an orchestrated cover up and emphatically points out that a key member of Wynne's team is repeatedly named in the document (although not alleged to have committed any crimes). She says it is unbelievable that Wynne would know nothing of the alleged cover up.
Horwath is right to demand an inquiry, again, but is there a time when even the most patient politician must take action? She's grown her party's reach through her calculated hesitance. But when does calculated patience become an inability to act?
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