Accountability and Transparency gone in 140 minutes under the Liberals: NDP MPP Fife

QUEEN'S PARK — How can the Wynne Liberals claim to be open and transparent and then ram through amendments to sweeping legislation in less time than an episode of Hockey Night in Canada, asked NDP Treasury Board critic Catherine Fife.

'Yesterday, this government rammed through amendments to Bill 8—that’s 11 pieces of distinct legislation all in one Harper-style omnibus bill,' said Fife, MPP for Kitchener-Waterloo. 'All of this happened in fewer than three hours.'

Some lowlights:

• Liberal committee members voted against granting the Children’s Advocate investigative powers over his entire mandate.
• Liberal committee members voted to open up questions over the Ombudsman jurisdictions around court rulings.
• Liberal committee members voted against making the Patient Ombudsman a true and independent ombudsman, obstructing the office from investigating infectious disease outbreaks that happen in private clinics. 

'Yesterday they voted to limit the powers of the child advocate. Yesterday they limited powers in oversight over the patient ombudsman, a $52-billion budget item, and they have actually opened the door only for oversight by invitation-only in the health care sector,' said Fife.

 'How can this government say they are open and transparent when they created a patient ombudsman designed to fail?' asked Fife.