Holding the government to account
Erin O’Toole asks a “question” of the government
The Peace Tower is framed in an archway on the East Block of Parliament Buildings on Parliament Hil in Ottawa, Thursday September 10, 2009. Opposition MPs, and even some Conservatives, agree Canada’s parliamentary committee system is broken.They just don’t agree on what’s gone wrong or who’s to blame. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
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Conservative MP Erin O’Toole’s question for the government yesterday.
According to the compendium of House of Commons procedure, “The right to seek information and the right to hold the Government accountable are recognized as fundamental to our system of parliamentary government” and “One of the principal ways by which Members exercise these rights is by asking questions in the House.” As the current guide to practice and procedure explains, Question Period “is this part of the parliamentary day where the government is held accountable for its administrative policies and the conduct of its Ministers, both individually and collectively.” Or, as Speaker James Jerome once said, “If the essence of Parliament is Government accountability, then surely the essence of accountability is the Question Period in the Canadian House of Commons.”
See previously: Here’s your problem