General

Who’s in charge? Parliament or the PM?

Ruling on Afghan detainee documents will establish boundaries on government authority

House of Commons Speaker Peter Milliken will reportedly deliver a landmark ruling on the powers of Parliament Tuesday afternoon which could establish whether the prime minister has the authority to keep confidential documents on Afghan detainee transfers out of the hands of his fellow parliamentarians. The opposition parties passed a motion requesting unredacted copies of the documents but their request has so far been thwarted by the government, which claims their release could compromise national security. As a result, the opposition has asked Milliken to rule on whether Stephen Harper’s refusal to hand them over amounts to being in contempt of Parliament.

Globe and Mail

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