Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Monday, January 21, 2013

Page worried about future of Parliamentary Budget Office, Parliament’s watchdog

Parliament and Canadians must decide whether they want a hard-hitting, transparent Parliamentary Budget Office or if they want it to disappear, says Canada’s Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page whose five-year term ends on March 24.

“Our fear is the government potentially will use this as an opportunity to appoint somebody with no experience, no knowledge, which is a big fear that we have, in which case the office disappears,” Mr. Page said in a speech to the Canadian Club in Ottawa on Jan. 15.

On March 24, Mr. Page’s five-year appointment will come to an end, and he has said that he would not be asking the government to renew his term.

“In a culture where secrecy is too common and analytical dissonance is not welcome, the future of my office, the legislative budget office, is in doubt,” he said.

Mr. Page has voiced concern that the government is dragging its feet in appointing his successor, and will ultimately use the opportunity to appoint someone weak.

“What’s in it for the government to have a PBO? Almost nothing, nothing. What in it for Parliament? A lot. What’s in it for Canadians? Potentially a lot. Can we trust the better angels of our nature? No, never, not in this world,” he said.

Parliamentary Librarian Sonia L’Heureux is helming the search for Mr. Page’s successor, as the PBO falls under the umbrella of the Library of Parliament.

On Jan. 11, the Library of Parliament put out a request for bids from executive search firms to aid in headhunting. The tender closes Jan. 22.

“Following the evaluation of proposals, the Library will issue a contract to a supplier who will then prepare the recruitment strategy and detailed work plan, including a list of activities and timeline” for short-listing PBO candidates, explained Library of Parliament spokesperson Cynthia Cusinato.

A selection committee will submit three names confidentially to government House leader, Peter Van Loan (York-Simcoe, Ont.), and the government will make the final decision, explained Ms. Cusinato.

The question is, said Liberal Finance critic Scott Brison (Kings-Hants, N.S.) do the Conservatives “want a watchdog or would prefer to have a lapdog?”

“Considering the baseless attacks on Kevin Page and his team and their work, by the Conservatives, I feel they will be looking for a lapdog, not a watchdog,” he said.

Mr. Page, the first Parliamentary budget officer, was appointed in spring 2008. The position was created under the Federal Accountability Act, and pays between  $139,900 and $164,500.

Last week Mr. Page recalled when the government was searching for the first PBO, nobody in public service wanted the job.

“Everybody’s head was down when they were looking for that first person. They said, ‘There’s nothing in here for the government, go away. I’ve got kids, university education to pay for, find somebody else, find somebody that’s retired,’” said Mr. Page.

Five years later, he is concerned that, again, capable individuals in the public service are not interested in the job due to weakness in the PBO’s enabling legislation.

NDP MP Linda Duncan (Edmonton-Strathcona, Alta.) said that the ideal successor to Mr. Page would be a “clone Kevin Page.”

“He is a man of extraordinary skills and experience,” she said.

“You want someone who has worked within the system but has a strong independent streak,” she added.

Mr. Page compared his necessary qualities to a home inspector: “You want that person to be like me: mean, ugly, and just miserable, and you want them to come in and kick the tires so you’re comfortable at the end of the day.”

The hiring criteria for the PBO will be released later, during the recruitment process, said Ms. Cusinato.

Looking forward, Ms. Duncan said it is unfortunate that the next budget officer would be entrenched in the office without the benefit of “critical reforms” such as making the office independent of government, reporting instead directly to Parliament.

“That’s what would help to protect and ensure that that position is maintained in the way that Kevin Page delivered it with his staff,” she said.

The Liberals and the NDP have been calling for the PBO’s independence. NDP Finance critic Peggy Nash (Parkdale-High Park, Ont.) tabled a bill establishing the PBO’s independence in December 2011.

“I work at pleasure of the Prime Minister. He could release me at any time. Yet, the job of a parliamentary budget officer in many ways is to create discomfort,” said Mr. Page.

 Mr. Page has highlighted three people in his office whom he  thinks would be strong successors: Mostafa Askari, currently an assistant PBO and director general of economic and fiscal analysis; Sahir Kahn, also assistant PBO and the office’s director general of expenditure and revenue analysis; and Chris Matier, the senior director of economic and fiscal analysis. They have been with the office since its creation.

“He built a team around him that is a very effective team,” said Mr. Brison.

Ms. Duncan said that Mr. Page’s leadership shines through the effective team he has assembled. She also said she feels very strongly that the Library of Parliament’s interviewing panel should have Parliamentary representatives. If the PBO were a full officer of Parliament, subject to a similar selection process as the auditor general, the nominee would come before a Parliamentary committee to be vetted.

The selection panel is led by Ms. L’Heureux and the intention is to include former senior officials like former auditors general, Privy Council clerks, former deputy ministers, and notable private experts, said Ms. Cusinato.

It could also include former Parliamentarians, she noted.

Mr. Page also expressed discomfort with the current selection system.

“There is no involvement in this process for Parliamentarians under the current legislation. Does it make sense that a watchdog be appointed by the person he’s supposed to watch financially? It doesn’t make sense,” he said.

Being Parliamentary budget officer and working in the office has been difficult at times, said Mr. Page.

The PBO is “always accused of being Darth Vader,” he said.

In 2009, the PBO faced a $1-million budget shortfall. When his office released its first report publicly, it was criticized for being so open. Its reports on costing Afghanistan, the price of the F-35 jets and others have been criticized by government.

In the face of this scrutiny, which Mr. Page said is part of ensuring the office is doing a  good job, the PBO has been careful to seek out second opinions on their reports from international experts.

“We know the foxes are out there, about to attack us when we put out our papers,” he said.

The office is currently working on a report on ship procurement. It is also at the Federal Court, asking for legal clarification of its mandate after being refused documents on the government’s spending cuts last year.

Ms. Duncan, who said she had “many briefings by the PBO staff” that have been invaluable, said that an important part of the office’s role is to work with House and Senate committees and MPs for a greater Parliamentary understanding of government spending. The PBO needs more resources to be doing more of this kind of work, she said.

The budget office has a budget of $2.8-million and has a staff of 14. Mr. Brison said he would also like to see the PBO’s funding increased.

“I’d like to see funding increased to provide them with the resources they need to be able to provide even more benefit to Parliament in our deliberation and evaluation of the cost of legislation and programs,” he said.

“Too often, Parliament is starved of information necessary to carry out its responsibilities,” said Mr. Page. His speech last week was a heartfelt call to return the power of the purse, and the ability to truly scrutinize spending, to Parliamentarians.

He noted that in 2010-2011, Parliamentarians spent just 90 hours scrutinizing hundreds of billions of dollars of spending across more than 80 organizations, included in the appropriations bills.

“Ninety hours for that amount of money. That doesn’t cover it,” he said.

“We cannot be bystanders, we’re the caretakers of these institutions, so shame on me if I don’t care that you have a budget, and we have spending plans and we can’t connect them. … Shame on me if I don’t give Parliament decision-support financial information,” he said.

If the government doesn’t appoint an interim or permanent Parliamentary Budget Officer before Mr. Page’s departure, “Library of Parliament employees who support PBO operations will continue to respond the needs and requests of Parliamentarians,” said Ms. Cusinato.

However, the release of PBO reports wouldn’t happen without someone to speak for the office, Mr. Page has explained.

If a strong successor isn’t appointed, the consequences will be “bad for Parliament and bad for democracy,” said Mr. Brison.

“The Conservatives will be downright gleeful to have the position vacant for a long time. They do not want scrutiny of their government,” he said.

Original Article
Source: hill times
Author: JESSICA BRUNO

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