Mr. Speaker, I will quote part II.1 from the report of the Chief Electoral Officer following the 40th general election, which states:
[The] Chief Electoral Officer does not receive any documentary evidence of the expenses reported in the election expenses return. Nor does the Act provide the Chief Electoral Officer with the authority to request that a party provide such evidence. Therefore, he has no means to verify the accuracy of the reported expenses on which the reimbursement is based.
We, in the opposition benches, voted to give the Chief Electoral Officer that power. The government said “no”. Why?