By Andrew Macdonald
The other week NDP Opposition leader Claudia Chender announced Sackville-Cobequid MLA Paul Wozney as her party’s critic for ‘ethics and accountability’.
“Wozney is taking on this new position, dedicated to getting answers for Nova Scotians and reforming the rules that give governments too much power to keep people in the dark about their spending, lobbying and procurement practices,” said the NDP.
What is old is new again in politics.
Back in July 2011, then Nova Scotia Progressive Conservative leader Jamie Baillie named a new critic role of Integrity, and appointed Inverness MLA Allan MacMaster to the post from his seven member caucus.
The Macdonald Notebook embeds in this article a July 2011 story from The Cape Breton Post in which MacMaster is quoted saying he wanted to consult with Nova Scotians on how he should handle that critic role.
July 2011 Cape Breton Post article on Jamie Baillie creating a Critic of Integrity and naming Allan MacMaster to that role.
While not commenting on the politics of the current Progressive Conservative government under Tim Houston, I spoke to Baillie, who said any Opposition party should have a critic for Ethics or Integrity.
In 2011, the RCMP had just released a criminal investigation involving MLA expense scandals. It led to some politicians at the Legislature getting criminal convictions, and Baillie created the Integrity critic role in his Tory caucus.
“That was just after the MLA expense scandal and I was newly elected as PC leader, and I shuffled the critic responsibilities and created a critic for government Integrity,” recalls Baillie.
“It got some coverage because it was unique and new. I believed it was called for because of a lot of distrust in government after the MLA expense scandal, and I wanted people to know that we were taking it seriously in the PC party that I led, and that is why we created the Integrity position,” says Baillie.
Baillie adds he supports what NDP leader Claudia Chender is doing with a critic of ethics.
“I think it is important, particularly in Opposition, to have someone responsible for holding the government to account for these kinds of things.”
Not specifically singling out or talking about the current Tory government, Baillie stresses any government should face a government ethics critic, especially a super-power government.
“I am a Progressive Conservative, and this is not about the current government. It is an important role for any government (to face the Opposition). It is more important now than ever. I will say it is more important when there is a super majority than when there isn’t a super majority. It is just an important function of the Opposition and we should respect that it is the job of the Opposition, which is to hold the government to account,” adds Baillie.
Jamie Baillie, left, with Mark Boudreau, Halifax Conservative candidate in the 2015 federal election. The Notebook
