public accounts committee

Some of what the AG told the Public Accounts committee

Deciding not to bother the finance department

With the public accounts committee’s F-35 study seemingly about to be halted, Liberal committee member Gerry Byrne and committee chair David Christopherson seem to be at odds. On Tuesday, Mr. Byrne used Question Period to query Mr. Christopherson (it’s a little known fact that committee chairs can be asked questions during QP). Mr. Christopherson seemed not to appreciate the gesture and is now lamenting for Mr. Byrne’s behaviour.

Philippe Lagassé offers some free advice to the opposition.

Here’s a good one: Why is this jet the only possible future fighter aircraft for the Canadian Forces?

The full lifecycle cost of the F-35 remains elusive.

While a number of department officials—including the deputy minister of defence and the assistant deputy minister for materiel—are set to appear before the Public Accounts Committee this morning, Peter MacKay told a Senate committee yesterday that the federal cabinet approved the decision to release a $15-billion projection for the F-35. And John Ivison reports that the “F-35 Secretariat,” created in the wake of the the auditor general’s report, has been renamed.

The Auditor General appeared before the Public Accounts Committee to explain his findings on the F-35 procurement.

Scenes from an emergency meeting of the standing committee on public accounts

The House doesn’t reconvene until Monday, but the public accounts committee will meet this afternoon to, presumably, launch its study of the F-35 procurement. The committee won’t hear from witnesses today, but might settle on a list of witnesses it wishes to hear from. The Liberals have identified ten individuals they’d like to hear from:

Fresh from the inbox, a statement from interim Liberal leader Bob Rae.

The government knows which gazebos, toilets and bike racks were built with that $45.8 million