Kathleen Wynne wants all MPPs’ expenses made public

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
39,778
454
83
Kathleen Wynne wants all MPPs’ expenses made public

Put your money where your mouth is.

That’s the not-too-subtle message from Premier Kathleen Wynne to Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak and NDP Leader Andrea Horwath over expenses.

Liberal sources told the Star that Wynne and Government Services Minister John Milloy will announce new legislation Thursday that would force opposition leaders and MPPs from all parties to post their expenses online.

In addition, the new accountability legislation is also expected to ensure expenses of employees at 197 government agencies will be publicly available.

Currently, only the premier, cabinet ministers their staff, and senior mandarins are bound by law to make their receipts public.

Wynne’s decision to try to make such disclosure compulsory for her political rivals and others comes against the backdrop of a looming provincial election this spring.

While both Hudak and Horwath have volunteered to put out their expensed travel, accommodation, meals and incidentals, neither leader’s information is as up to date as that posted by the premier and her ministers.

The government bill, which will be formally introduced in the legislature later this month, would make it mandatory for both opposition leaders and all their staff to post their expenses.

Liberal, Conservative and New Democratic MPPs would also have to abide by the new rules, but their staff members would be exempt.

“This is all about increasing accountability and transparency,” a government source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Wednesday.

Both Hudak and Horwath have long called for greater openness in such areas, so it will be difficult for them to oppose Wynne’s move.

The Tories post their leader’s expenses online, but they have not been updated since June 22, 2013.

Hudak’s office said Wednesday that the delay is due to the fact the receipts are still with the integrity commissioner, who oversees such things.

Although the New Democrats voluntarily display Horwath’s expenses on a caucus website, when the Star checked Wednesday afternoon they had not been updated since June 2011 — four months before the last provincial election.

Following questions from the Star, however, the NDP leader’s data was amended later in the day. Now, it goes up until July 2013 — though there remain gaps from mid-August 2010 until the end of that year and for the second half of 2011.

Wynne’s expenses are current to only Sept. 30, 2013.

The government said the lag is due to the fact that the integrity commissioner has not yet released the latest batch to be posted.

Since 2010, expense receipts for senior Ontario public servants, cabinet ministers, political staff, and senior executives at the province’s largest Crown agencies have been available online.

With the Conservatives and New Democrats likely to exploit past expense controversies at the ORNGE air ambulance service, eHealth Ontario, and the Pan Am Games, the minority Grits are hoping to insulate themselves against further criticism.

The government is also mindful that after the expense scandals that have roiled the Senate, there is a greater public appetite for increased transparency surrounding public officials.

Last October, the Liberals joined the Tories and New Democrats to close a long-standing loophole that enabled MPPs to receive up to $21, 000 in housing allowances even if their ridings were close to Queen’s Park.

Now, under the Members’ Accommodation Allowances Act — which all three parties helped write — MPPs whose ridings are 50 km or less from legislature would be not qualify for payment regardless of where they live.

That change was made after former Thornhill Tory MPP Peter Shurman was eligible for a Toronto housing allowance because his principal residence was in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Shurman, who always maintained he did nothing wrong because he followed the rules and made Hudak aware of the arrangement, retired from provincial politics in December.

Kathleen Wynne wants all MPPs’ expenses made public
 

Locutus

Adorable Deplorable
Jun 18, 2007
32,230
45
48
65
mr. wynne is the last one who should worried about accountability. He helped fuk us a good one with that power plant.
 

SLM

The Velvet Hammer
Mar 5, 2011
29,151
3
36
London, Ontario
While I don't disagree with that notion at all, I have to say when it comes to this provincial government I'm less concerned with MPPs spending individual habits and more concerned with the big money (mis)spending that's gone on.
 

BornRuff

Time Out
Nov 17, 2013
3,175
0
36
While I don't disagree with that notion at all, I have to say when it comes to this provincial government I'm less concerned with MPPs spending individual habits and more concerned with the big money (mis)spending that's gone on.

You might want to reserve judgement until you see their expenses.

That being said, on this power plant issue, opponents have been working hard to try to make this stick as a big scandal, but it has never quite made it to that point. Obviously at queen's park they have had committees and launched investigations, but outside, people seem to be banging their head's against the wall shouting "why don't people care more about this!".

I think to me, the fact that it became the automatic deflection that Rob Ford supporters used whenever people criticized him has made it into kind of a trope that I can't take seriously anymore.
 
Last edited:

SLM

The Velvet Hammer
Mar 5, 2011
29,151
3
36
London, Ontario
You might want to reserve judgement until you see their expenses.

That being said, on this power plant issue, opponents have been working hard to try to make this stick as a big scandal, but it has never quite made it to that point. Obviously at queen's park they have had committees and launched investigations, but outside, people seem to be banging their head's against the wall shouting "why don't people care more about this!".

E-Health-$1 billion dollars

eHealth squandered $1B, auditor says | Toronto Star

Ornge-$1 million dollars

Ornge Scandal

Gas plant cancellation-$1.1 billion dollars

Oakville gas plant cancellation costs $675M, AG says - Toronto - CBC News

I think to me, the fact that it became the automatic deflection that Rob Ford supporters used whenever people criticized him has made it into kind of a trope that I can't take seriously anymore.
Must be nice to be so cavalier about everybody's money like that. Sleep well at night do you?

And just to make myself really clear, I do not support and am not 'faithful' to any political party. I think that those who are need to have their damned heads examined.

Those that are in power, well that's were the buck stops and if they don't want to stand accountable, then don't take the job.
 

BornRuff

Time Out
Nov 17, 2013
3,175
0
36

The funny thing is that both Ornge and eHealth seemed to gain more traction than the whole gas plant thing. Hard to understand why, but probably had a lot to do with Dalton resigning before things got too pitchforky.

Must be nice to be so cavalier about everybody's money like that. Sleep well at night do you?

And just to make myself really clear, I do not support and am not 'faithful' to any political party. I think that those who are need to have their damned heads examined.

Those that are in power, well that's were the buck stops and if they don't want to stand accountable, then don't take the job.

I think it just goes to show that pushing an issue in the wrong way can really backfire.

Whenever I turned on talk radio in Toronto over the last year, and one of Rob Ford's issues was the topic, without fail someone would call in and complain that nobody should talk about Ford because the Liberals spent a billion dollars on the gas plant.

They are separate issues, and using it to somehow defend our sitting mayor hanging out with gangsters and smoking crack just makes the gas plant issue look more petty than it otherwise would.
 

SLM

The Velvet Hammer
Mar 5, 2011
29,151
3
36
London, Ontario
The funny thing is that both Ornge and eHealth seemed to gain more traction than the whole gas plant thing. Hard to understand why, but probably had a lot to do with Dalton resigning before things got too pitchforky.



I think it just goes to show that pushing an issue in the wrong way can really backfire.

Whenever I turned on talk radio in Toronto over the last year, and one of Rob Ford's issues was the topic, without fail someone would call in and complain that nobody should talk about Ford because the Liberals spent a billion dollars on the gas plant.

They are separate issues, and using it to somehow defend our sitting mayor hanging out with gangsters and smoking crack just makes the gas plant issue look more petty than it otherwise would.

This thread is not about Rob Ford, who by the way is not our sitting mayor, but thanks once again for making him the topic.

What were you saying about deflection again? They are separate issues, in fact they have nothing to do with one another. So how about we keep them separate then.

$1.1 billion dollars to cancel the gas plant, this is what, not material enough to warrant criticism?
 

BornRuff

Time Out
Nov 17, 2013
3,175
0
36
This thread is not about Rob Ford, who by the way is not our sitting mayor, but thanks once again for making him the topic.

What were you saying about deflection again? They are separate issues, in fact they have nothing to do with one another. So how about we keep them separate then.

$1.1 billion dollars to cancel the gas plant, this is what, not material enough to warrant criticism?

Lol, do you see me defending it? I am commenting on why it never seemed to gain much traction.

Do you disagree?

It seemed like both eHealth and Ornge captured the public's interest a lot more.

Maybe it is also that those two were more on a human scale. They had characters like Chris Maza and numbers that people easily understood.

People know that 3000 bucks a day is a lot of money to be paid, and that expensing a muffin or a tea on top of that just seem stupid. People know that 14 bucks for a glass of orange juice is stupid.

People here hundreds of millions of dollars and legal jargon, and while they know it is a lot of money, it doesn't always get the same visceral reaction because it just isn't so much in their wheel house.
 

lone wolf

Grossly Underrated
Nov 25, 2006
32,493
210
63
In the bush near Sudbury
We're not getting the whole truth about those gas plants. Mississauga was just settling down following that 1979 train wreck at Mavis when Sunrise blew. As the city closed in around them, Hudak bowed to NIMBY pressure to halt gas plant construction if elected. Ontario politics is all about blame the other guy for what you planned on doing if you got the power to do it. Transparency? Neither big business party have a clue ... and Unions aren't going to cut it either....

I'm more concerned about hydro rates anyhow....
 
Last edited:

SLM

The Velvet Hammer
Mar 5, 2011
29,151
3
36
London, Ontario
Lol, do you see me defending it? I am commenting on why it never seemed to gain much traction.

You seem very willing to dismiss it as not being worthy of either criticism or discussion.

I think to me, the fact that it became the automatic deflection that Rob Ford supporters used whenever people criticized him has made it into kind of a trope that I can't take seriously anymore.

Do you disagree?
It doesn't matter how other people use it, the bottom line is whether it's right or wrong and what your personal stand on it is.

Unless of course your taking the same tactic as those whom you malign and dismissing wrong doing based on partisan bias.

It seemed like both eHealth and Ornge captured the public's interest a lot more.

Maybe it is also that those two were more on a human scale. They had characters like Chris Maza and numbers that people easily understood.

People know that 3000 bucks a day is a lot of money to be paid, and that expensing a muffin or a tea on top of that just seem stupid. People know that 14 bucks for a glass of orange juice is stupid.

People here hundreds of millions of dollars and legal jargon, and while they know it is a lot of money, it doesn't always get the same visceral reaction because it just isn't so much in their wheel house.
People are very much disgusted over the gas plant cancellation bill that keeps rising. And they have every right to demand that the media's attention should be more focused on that over that of the foibles of a municipal politician. And that is not a defense of the looney mayor but a legitimate criticism as to why an issue that affects everyone in the province is not a priority in the press.

We're not getting the whole truth about those gas plants.

Mississauga was just settling down following that 1979 train wreck at Mavis when Sunrise blew. As the city closed in around them, Hudak bowed to NIMBY pressure to halt gas plant construction if elected. Ontario politics is all about blame the other guy for what you planned on doing if you got the power to do it. Transparency? Neither big business party have a clue ... and Unions aren't going to cut it either....

Exactly. Seems like the kind of thing that investigative journalist should be, well, investigating, doesn't it?

I'm more concerned about hydro rates anyhow....
And there's another one. Not just the rates but what is increasingly looking like the grossly negligent billing practices of Hydro One.
 

lone wolf

Grossly Underrated
Nov 25, 2006
32,493
210
63
In the bush near Sudbury
And there's another one. Not just the rates but what is increasingly looking like the grossly negligent billing practices of Hydro One.

Too bad it couldn't be considered treason on the fool who broke the Hydro Electric Power Commission of Ontario - the PUBLIC utility formed in 1906 (under a Conservative government) to give Ontario industry a competitive advantage, and power to the people at a reasonable rate - into 5 individual for profit (thus available to investors) companies - each feeding off each other to artificially raise hydro rates, forever crippling Ontario industry.

Ring of Fire may well be dead. Hydro rates figured prominently in the death.
 
Last edited:

Locutus

Adorable Deplorable
Jun 18, 2007
32,230
45
48
65
Are you seriously deleting my posts but leaving stuff like DaSleeper's and Nuggler's post?

nope

p.s. I'm at work and reported posts get first crack. I don't have time to monitor all the drivel around here but if you insist, maybe after 6. ;-)
 
Last edited: