The government has had free rein for five weeks. It is time it was reined in.

LComment

ong, long ago — around the end of January — Conservative MP Tony Baldinelli submitted a written question about a loan for $196 million that was written off by Export Development Canada.

Who received the loan, what was it for and why was it written off, he asked, not unreasonably.

He has just received the answer from Global Affairs Canada, a department notorious for its imperiousness when it comes to public accountability.

The transaction in question was export-related and deemed to be in Canada’s national interest, he was told.

That was all Baldinelli, or you and I, are entitled to know. Any more details would breach confidentiality rules and customer privilege.

“It is extremely disappointing to receive a non-response like this. We are talking about tax dollars generated by hard-working Canadians,” he said.

In the absence of a sitting parliament, this is the kind of brush-off that governments can get away with. The House of Commons is often derided but it helps keep the government honest by airing its dirty laundry in public.

Even in the “billions here, billions there” days of emergency relief spending, $200 million is real money. The loan came from the Canada Account, a politically directed program that is administered by EDC but usually involves projects the export credit agency wouldn’t touch with a 10-foot pole.

There have been 15 loans worth more than $100 million since 2001 — almost all of them political hobby-horses of the government of the day such as the TransMountain pipeline; Bombardier; the automotive bailouts to Chrysler and GM; General Dynamics Land Systems (light armoured vehicles) and the Davie shipyard in Quebec. There is no official confirmation which deal has been written off but sources said EDC extended loans to Norwegian sub-sea contractor, Cecon, at a time when it was a member of the partnership that bought the Davie yard in 2012.

Cecon commissioned three offshore construction vessels from Davie but went through a debt restructuring in 2015 that saw creditors take a hit. The loans to Chrysler were written off and publicized because the company agreed to make the terms public.

But in this case, the government is hiding behind a provision in the Export Development Act that says customers are privileged and the information may not be disclosed.

Why? If the loan is written off, the taxpayer is on the hook. Why shouldn’t we know who has stiffed us?

Writeoffs are a last resort and are rare, the government claims. When requested it is because writing the loan off is “deemed to be in the best interests of Canada and Canadians”.

I like my coffee dark and my governments transparent. I can see why writing off $200 million and burying the bad news might be good for the party in power, but how could it possibly be in the best interest of Canadians?

Baldinelli said he plans to asks colleagues on the international trade committee to raise the issue when Parliament returns.

The ardour for truth may diminish if the Conservatives realize they were in power when the bad loan was extended.

But the point remains valid — Parliament is the best whistleblower on government misbehaviour — “the custodian of the nation’s freedom,” in the words of John Diefenbaker.

No party has a monopoly on wisdom and, as Bloc leader Yves-Francois Blanchet pointed out in the House during last Saturday’s emergency sitting, improvements were made to the emergency response benefit after Canadians contacted MPs of all parties.

When the House will reconvene remains a matter under discussion.

The motion suspending the House of Commons proposed MPs return on April 20 but there is no deal in place to either resume sittings or to delay until the technology is in place to hold a virtual parliament — something the Speaker of the House says may take weeks.

The prime minister has said he prefers the idea of a virtual sittings. He probably prefers not having to answer awkward questions at all.

Conservative leader Andrew Scheer said the sitting last Saturday showed the benefits of face-to-face debates.

Quebec Conservative MP Bernard Généreux used the opportunity to call for the government to extend the emergency response benefit to part-time and seasonal workers, and to amend the wage subsidy to include small businesses with a payroll lower than $50,000. The government has since acted on both demands.

Scheer said regular “accountability sessions” are needed to ask the government why it has relied so heavily on advice from the World Health Organization, why Health Canada hasn’t fast-tracked new medications and why some people are still falling through the benefits cracks. “This cannot wait until June or the fall. Parliament must get back to work,” he said at a press conference on Thursday.

In the U.K., the House of Commons has proposed hybrid proceedings that will see up to 50 MPs in the chamber of the House and 120 members taking part in proceedings via video conferencing.

The most abrupt departure in 700 years of parliamentary history is due to start next Wednesday and Canadians will be watching closely. The government has had free rein for five weeks. It is time it was reined in.

Scheer is right when he says, now more than ever, Parliament is an essential service.