Opposition Leader Thomas Mulcair says the acrimonious spring session in the House of Commons has exposed a “tired, used” Conservative government, after weeks of controversy over Senate spending.
Speaking to reporters a day after all parties in the House agreed to adjourn for their summer break a few days early, Mulcair said Prime Minister Stephen Harper “owes a lot of answers to Canadians.”
The Senate spending scandal has dominated question period for weeks, with opposition parties slamming the government over a $90,000 cheque Harper’s former chief of staff Nigel Wright gave to Sen. Mike Duffy to cover his improperly claimed living expenses.
Wright resigned and Duffy left the Conservative caucus, but the attacks continued as the New Democrats and the Liberals demanded the prime minister reveal whatever he knew about the deal.
Harper has insisted that he did not know anything about Wright’s personal cheque to Duffy. The RCMP is investigating, but no criminal charges have been laid.
In his remarks following the NDP caucus meeting Wednesday, Mulcair slammed Harper for his attendance record in the House, saying the prime minister has been present for question period only five times in the past five weeks, thus avoiding queries about the scandal.
Harper was in Europe this week for the G8 summit. Before that, he was travelling in South America on a trade mission.
Conservative House Leader Peter Van Loan said Wednesday the government has been getting results while others were focused on “the theatre of question period.”
Van Loan touted all the legislation passed during the spring session, including budget and crime bills.
As the Duffy controversy continued to simmer, the Conservatives launched a counter-attack on Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, who has been under fire for collecting fees from charities for speaking engagements.
After a New Brunswick charity complained that it was left with a shortfall after paying the Liberal leader $20,000 to speak at a fundraising event, the Tories said Trudeau should have never charged charities for his appearances at events.
Trudeau told reporters Wednesday that there has been “a lot of negativity and personal attacks in the House.” He said MPs can better spend their time in their own ridings over the following weeks.
He said he has offered to make restitution to charities that were not satisfied with the outcome of his appearances at events, but most of them are not asking for their money back.
Despite a bitter House of Commons session, both Trudeau and Mulcair said their respective parties managed to claim victories and position themselves better in the eyes of Canadian voters.
Other controversies in the House included the ongoing investigation of robocalls during the 2011 federal election, and accusations by some Tory MPs that they have been muzzled by their own party.
Edmonton backbencher Brent Rathgeber made headlines when he left the Conservative caucus over the issue, choosing instead to sit as an Independent.
Harper returned to Ottawa Wednesday after a trip to Europe for the G8 summit. The Conservative Party is now preparing for a policy convention in Calgary later this month, after which a cabinet shuffle is expected.
