Thursday, July 10, 2025

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Thursday, July 10, 2025 | Latest Paper

PMO, PCO should stay out of appointing parliamentary watchdogs: think-tank report

Staff in the Prime Minister’s Office and its non-partisan support branch shouldn’t control the appointment of parliamentary watchdogs. The decision ought to rest with Parliament, according to a think-tank report released last month with input from former watchdogs, top bureaucrats, and politicians. Over a series of interviews and roundtable discussions, those who participated in the […]

Lobbying czar calls for ‘transparency by default,’ cutting 20 per cent rule

When MPs sit down to review the Lobbying Act this fall, they should look at getting rid of the 20 per cent threshold required before someone has to register with the commissioner’s office, according to the new lobbying watchdog, a suggestion welcomed by Parliamentarians, an ethics advocate, and members of the government-relations community. It’s “too […]

Senators want more control in clerk selection, PMO to butt out

Senators are looking to send a message to the prime minister that if he truly believes in an independent Senate, he ought to give them a real say in who takes the top procedural job in the Red Chamber. On May 3, the Senate began debating a motion from Conservative Senator Leo Housakos (Wellington, Que.) that, […]

Brison’s $7-billion budget vote weakens parliamentary scrutiny of spending: current, ex-PBO

The Liberal government’s effort to align the budget with the main estimates has weakened an already broken system by creating a “massive central vote” that hands $7-billion to the Treasury Board with no scrutiny and nothing to compel promised spending, say Canada’s current and former parliamentary budget officers. Critics have said the “budget implementation vote” […]