The Opposition unveiled Wednesday both the unedited and edited versions of a Hansard transcript of a Nov. 2 Commons committee meeting.
Asked twice during the meeting by New Democrat MP Charlie Angus whether he would table the 242 completed project forms, Clement said "sure" each time, according to the unedited record.
The word "sure," however, is missing from the edited version, Angus said Wednesday.
He noted MPs are allowed to correct facts and mispronunciations in their own statements but "it's a stretch to take an affirmative and make it blank."
Angus and fellow MP Alexandre Boulerice also released documents obtained by the NDP from the Town of Muskoka Lakes which they say contradict Clement's testimony before committee.
They discrepancies, they say, relate to Clement's claim that he and his officials had no direct involvement in winnowing down the 242 projects to 32.
Emails, however, suggest otherwise.
"Canadians were told that Mr. Clement's testimony would finally provide answers and give closure on the G8 boondoggle," Angus said. "Unfortunately, Mr. Clement used the committee as an exercise in spin, obfuscation and misrepresentation of the facts and what is, perhaps, most disturbing is the actual public record of his answers were changed after the fact."
The NDP has been trying to hold the Conservatives to account for a G8 "slush" fund that poured some $50 million into Clement's Muskoka riding for infrastructure projects, some of which were later found to be dubious.
Origin
Source: Montreal Gazette
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