General

Government is mocking parliament over Afghan docs: opposition

Trio of MPs ask for violation ruling

Opposition MPs are arguing that the Conservatives have flouted parliamentary rights and traditions by refusing to heed a House order to hand over documents relating to the Afghan detainee scandal. Liberal MP Derek Lee, NDP defence critic Jack Harris and Bloc Québécois MP Claude Bachand stood in the House Thursday morning and called upon the House Speaker to rule it a violation of parliamentary privilege. “If we don’t stand up, efforts to undermine our constitution will have succeeded,” Lee said. Furthermore, Harris made a point of privilege that called for Defence Minister Peter MacKay, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson and Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon to be found in contempt of the House unless all unredacted documents are turned over to the Afghanistan committee within 30 days of the request. The government has maintained that it won’t hand over the documents due to matters of national security.

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