Audit finds ‘transformative change’ needed in Senate
OTTAWA — Spending in the scandal-ridden, self-policing Senate is devoid of oversight and accountability, says an explosive audit of expenses that urges “transformative change” to fix systemic problems in the upper chamber.
Auditor general Michael Ferguson’s two-year examination of Senate expenses proposes nothing short of a complete overhaul of how spending is governed — sweeping changes that echo what the auditor general has been saying for years: parliamentarians should not be overseeing the spending of their peers.
The audit identifies $976,627 in questionable spending among 30 current and retired senators. Of those 30, the Senate is recommending that the Mounties do a criminal review on the spending of nine senators — two of them still sitting, the other seven retired.
Former Liberal senator Rod Zimmer’s disputed expense claims top the list at $176,014, which includes a housing allowance to which he wasn’t entitled and $2,072 over two years for taxis in Ottawa that were in fact used for personal trips.
Tinkering with expense rules in recent years has had little impact, says the report. Portions of the report were viewed by The Canadian Press.
“The weaknesses and problems uncovered in the course of this comprehensive audit of senators’ expenses call for a transformational change in the way expenses are claimed, managed, controlled and reviewed,” Ferguson writes.
“Simply changing or adding to existing rules will not be enough. Improvements in oversight, accountability, transparency, and senators’ consideration for the cost to taxpayers are needed to resolve the issues that we have identified.”
The audit, to be made public Tuesday, recommends that an independent oversight body of experts be established to decide whether an expense claim falls inside or outside Senate rules. It also calls for regular, outside audits of spending to promote “diligence and discipline” from senators, staff and the administration responsible for spending public dollars.
Such a system, the report says, would prevent problems from snowballing into those that have engulfed disgraced senators Pamela Wallin, Mike Duffy, Mac Harb or Patrick Brazeau.
The latter three are all facing criminal charges stemming from their Senate expenses; Duffy is on trial on 31 charges of fraud, breach of trust and bribery. He has pleaded not guilty. Wallin remains under RCMP investigation.
The audit, which reportedly cost nearly $21 million to conduct, reviewed more than 80,000 transactions worth about $180 million.
Nine senators, including Zimmer, were to be referred Friday to the RCMP for criminal review over problems with their travel and housing. Auditors say there was either a lack of or contradictory evidence about claims for these nine that prevented them from reaching a conclusion, leaving a decision about propriety to the Mounties.
Zimmer disputes the findings, including $2,072 for taxis in Ottawa for him and his wife that appeared to be for personal reasons.
In a blistering written response to the audit, he accuses Ferguson of “appearing to be interfering in the judicial proceedings now taking place in the trial of Sen. Duffy, where the issue of residency … (is) central to the proceedings.”
The two sitting senators facing RCMP scrutiny are Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu, a Quebec Conservative, and Colin Kenny, who was appointed by Pierre Trudeau 31 years ago.
Auditors found problems with $61,076 Boisvenu claimed in expenses and $35,549 worth of travel claims Kenny made that didn’t have enough documentation to prove he was on Senate business.
Kenny disputes the findings, including conclusions that he had staffers organize his personal affairs, which Kenny writes ended up “costing the Senate no money” and took up a minuscule portion of their daily workload.
Two others on the list of nine — former Conservative Donald Oliver and former Liberal Marie-P. Charette-Poulin — have repaid expenses deemed ineligible.
The remaining seven are disputing Ferguson’s findings. Some have delivered blistering responses that are included in the audit report. One calls on Prime Minister Stephen Harper to hold a referendum on Senate abolition this October.
Housing is an issue for many in the group of nine, with auditors alleging three former Liberals lived primarily at what they claimed was a secondary residence in the capital.