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4.04.2012

What doesn’t the Harper government want you to know?

As it turns out, apparently the Harper Conservatives want to keep you from knowing quite a bit. 







The Conservative Party ran on a platform of open responsible and transparent government, but at their current rate they will soon be the most secretive on record.
“Secret meetings”, somewhat of a tradition in majority governments, are becoming more and more regular at the House of Commons.  

Lately, government committees are holding a large percentage of their meetings in camera, denying the public access to what was discussed and decided.
In a number of recent articles, Elizabeth Thompson compared the number of secret meetings held under the liberal and conservative majority governments.

While the Liberals were ahead, the Conservative Government, at their current rate, will soon hold the record as the least transparent government in recent history.

The top three most secretive committees according to Thompson’s article are,
  1. The Standing committee Procedure and House affairs which has spent a record 62.7 percent of its time in camera
  2. The Standing Committee of Public Accounts at 50 percent
  3. The Standing Committee for the Status of Women at 42 percent.
While the Liberal and Conservative governments bicker over who has hidden more from Canadians, the Green Party is the only party asking why they are hiding at all?

Under the leadership of Elizabeth May, we are working to ensure these secret committees are held to account.  Take action in demanding an open, transparent, accountable government today, by to writing Prime Minister Harper, and challenging he follow through on his promise of a transparent government.

The text below is the letter I just sent to Prime Minister Harper. Please feel free to copy my letter and write to the Prime Minister yourself and demand open and accountable government.

Dear Prime Minister Harper,

The Conservative Party ran on a platform of open responsible and transparent government, but at the current rate your government will soon be the most secretive on record.

“Secret meetings”, somewhat of a tradition in majority governments, are becoming more and more regular at the House of Commons. 

Lately, government committees are holding a large percentage of their meetings in camera, denying the public access to what was discussed and decided.

Canada should be a leader in democracy and I write to you to demand an open, transparent, accountable government.

You ran on a promise of transparency and accountability and Canadians expect you to follow through on your promise of a transparent government.

Regards, Mark Daye

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