Gas plants scandal
Former McGuinty aide ripped for ‘stupid’ plan,
It was “stupid” for former Dalton McGuinty chief of staff David Livingston to talk about using an outsider to wipe computer hard drives in the premier’s office, Ontario’s top civil servant said bluntly Tuesday.
Testifying before a committee of MPPs probing deleted documents in the $1.1-billion gas plants scandal, cabinet secretary Peter Wallace laid bare his concerns about Livingston, who is now the subject of a police investigation for breach of trust.
“It struck me, to the extent it struck me at all, as a stupid comment, as indication of passing frustration,” Wallace said about Livingston’s musings before Premier Kathleen Wynne took power on Feb. 11, 2013.
The comment was “not something that anyone would reasonably expect any experienced executive to actually contemplate with any seriousness, let alone execute or apparently execute,” Wallace added.
That’s why, Wallace testified under oath, he did not mention Livingston’s remarks in two previous appearances before the committee.
Ontario Provincial Police claim Livingston, a former banker, obtained a special password enabling the holder to wipe computers and passed it to Peter Faist, a computer expert and the boyfriend of deputy McGuinty chief of staff Laura Miller.
The allegation has not been proven in court, no charges have been laid and Livingston has denied any wrongdoing, as has Faist. Breach of trust carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
Wallace told MPPs he did not know anything more about Livingston’s alleged conduct until he was interviewed by detectives from the OPP anti-rackets branch last year.
“I was extremely, extremely surprised to learn that there’s an allega- tion that actions had crossed from stupid idea to something really stupid to what the OPP were telling (me) was potentially criminally stupid,” Wallace added. He compared giving such a password to a non-government employee to handing over a government credit card to an outsider. “You know the rules with a credit card. We don’t expect you to share.” The cabinet secretary, who is in charge of the civil service, said he regrets the password was granted — which happened only because he believed other McGuinty office staffers had similar global access rights, which was not the case. “I was very disappointed at the advice I received,” Wallace said. “I wouldn’t have authorized any access . . . why would I?” He described Livingston as a “highpowered, smart, not patient man” who may have come to the cabinet office for help with a password because “his office may have been in some chaos” as the McGuinty era drew to a close. Wallace said he warned Livingston about his responsibilities in keeping records both verbally and in a “clear memorandum,” and later told the incoming Wynne administration “your guys did not leave you in the best position.” Wynne has denied any involvement with Livingston, repeating Tuesday that “he was never my staff.” Police are now doing forensic examinations of 24 hard drives seized from the premier’s office to see when they were accessed with the special password, which was valid until March 20, 2013, several weeks into the Wynne administration. Police claim a handful of computers were accessed on Feb. 6 and 7 of that year. MPPs on the committee said they want to call Livingston for another appearance, but his lawyer is deferring until he can speak with the committee’s legal counsel, which has not yet been hired. “This looks to me like a stall,” said New Democrat MPP Peter Tabuns. “He has legal counsel.” Faist, who has offered to testify May 13 by video link from British Columbia, where he now lives, should be asked to appear in person because his oath would not be enforceable under that arrangement and “could render the committee useless,” said Progressive Conservative MPP John Yakabuski.