Politics on TV: RCMP bullying, Mali, and Senate audits

Here are the three things you should not have missed:

1. Report on bullying and harassment in the RCMP ranks
2. Peter MacKay on extending the Mali mission
3. Senator James Cowan on the external audits

RCMP harassment report:

Power Play spoke with retired RCMP officer Krista Carle, who had previously brought harassment claims against the RCMP forward, about the Public Complaints Commission report on harassment in the ranks. Carle said she was pleased that the report acknowledges the systemic problems in the Force and that it proposes changes, but that she believes many more incidents remain unreported because of the self-doubt and shunning by co-workers that happens when officers who complain are labelled “troublemakers.” Over on Power & Politics, an MP panel of Candice Bergen, Randall Garrison and Carolyn Bennett weighed in, where Bergen noted that Bill C-42 to modernise the RCMP disciplinary procedure is being debted currently, while Garrison noted that the bill has gaps that they remain concerned about, and Bennett said that fixing the problems will require additional resources and training.

Peter MacKay:

Defence Minister Peter MacKay was on Power Play to discuss the 30-day extension of the Mali mission. MacKay said that Canada has received a lot of positive feedback from the international community for our contribution of the C-17, and that he hopes to hear more details of the plan going forward at the NATO meeting in Brussels next week. MacKay says that so far, there have been 27 trips between France and Bamako, Mali, and that our C-17 has moved a significant amount of personnel and equipment, and they will calculate the costs of fuel, personnel and wear-and-tear at the end of the mission.

The Senate:

Power & Politics spoke with Liberal Senate leader James Cowan, who said that the results of the external audit on those four senators’ expenses will be made public, and that calling in the external auditor was the right thing to do. Senator Cowan noted that the Senate is subject to an external audit on an annual basis, just as the Commons is, and that the Auditor General is not brought in as there are concerns about whether it is appropriate, as he reports to Parliament. MPs also weighed in, where Peter Van Loan said that the government expects those audit results will be made public, Charlie Angus questioned if any of Senator Wallin’s travel was for party business, while Stéphane Dion said there needs to be more transparency and accountability for Parliamentarians, and that he finds it curious that the PM defended Wallin but not the others.

Worth Noting:

• Liberal leadership candidate Marc Garneau said that all candidates need to express a vision of the country with a policy framework around it.
• Diane Finley and Senator Doug Finley spoke about how their political and personal connection began on the same day, more than 31 years ago, and how their political duties play out within their marriage.