Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have systematically and deliberately undermined and eroded the notion of ministerial accountability until it is only a facsimile of what it was intended to be.
One graphic illustration is the refusal of the President of the Treasury Board to appear before the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates to defend hundreds of millions of dollars of proposed spending in the supplementary estimates.
It is a fundamental principle of our parliamentary democracy that the government has to seek the consent of Parliament to spend money, and the notion of accountability dictates that the minister appears before the appropriate committee to make the case for any such spending, subject to scrutiny, oversight, due diligence, and thorough examination by its members.
Members well know that kings have lost their heads for failing to respect the supremacy of Parliament.
The stubborn intransigence of the minister in refusing to attend before a parliamentary committee shows an appalling disrespect for the institution, its members, and the Canadians they represent.