Mr. Speaker, last Tuesday I addressed a question to the Minister for Democratic Reform concerning Mr. Robert Cooling who was appointed to the Moncton board of referees for employment insurance.
The minister's response was to reiterate, at the expense of and in the minister's words to myself and I guess all of us asking these questions, that we were “being tedious” and that all the Conservatives' campaigning financing activities were legal and that they followed the intent of the law, but not necessarily the letter of the law.
The minister also stated that the appointments his government makes are all qualified and that it does not engage in patronage appointments to those who are not qualified.
From my vantage point the only qualification I can see for this patronage appointment was that Mr. Cooling was the official agent for the Conservative Party in the Moncton--Riverview--Dieppe riding during the last election.
His qualification then it seems would be his financial deftness at moving several thousands of dollars in and out of the national campaign to help avoid advertising expenses in the local riding.
We were given an answer to the questions and I find myself here again tonight asking this question. I promise if I get a straight answer I will not call the minister or his representative tedious.
Specifically, the question would be this. What qualification does Mr. Cooling have other than being an official agent during the defeated campaign for the Conservatives in Moncton--Riverview--Dieppe that would make him a good fit for the appointment?
I refer to the qualifications for a member of the board of referees. He or she must be independent and impartial. His or her qualifications must include a high school diploma. His or her experience can be in the community, in the voluntary sector, in the business sector, in the professional sector or in the government sector. He or she must have experience in leading group discussions and, get this, experience in interpreting and applying rules, presumably not the rules of Elections Canada however.
I have also information that during his tenure as official agent, Mr. Cooling shuffled some $7,479 from the national campaign to the riding and then back again in an in-and-out scandal.
There are other names on this list of 66 in-and-outers, but I think it is important to know whether Mr. Cooling was part of a lawsuit initiated against Elections Canada and in that case whether he knew he was omitted or discontinued in the lawsuit against Elections Canada.
Lise Vallières, who acted for a riding in Quebec, had no knowledge she was removed from the docket, which I have here, and we also have a lawyer's letter which is profound with respect to whether or not Mr. Cooling had knowledge of what it was he was involved in.
Was Mr. Cooling qualified, other than being the official agent for the position he received from the government, to be a member of the board of referees for the Employment Insurance Commission?