RCMP will not pursue case that led to health firings
VICTORIA — Any lingering allegations of criminal wrongdoing against fired government health researchers collapsed completely Thursday after the RCMP told government it wouldn’t act upon a comptroller general’s report into supposed pharmaceutical contracting issues.
The report, which had taken more than two years to complete, looked at pharmaceutical drug research data access, alleged conflicts of interest and contracting irregularities raised as part of the botched firing of eight health researchers in 2012.
The government had already warned the RCMP that there were no criminal allegations in the report, as outlined in internal emails obtained by The Vancouver Sun earlier this month.
Nonetheless, the government gave the RCMP a copy of the report in April and then claimed it could not discuss the issues publicly because of the police activity.
“The RCMP have advised the office of the comptroller general that following their review of the report they do not intend to pursue the matter further,” said finance ministry spokesman Jamie Edwardson.
“The minister of finance has, on learning this, directed the comptroller general’s office that unless there are other legal impediments, we should begin to prepare and review the report for public release as soon as practicable.”
The government had tried pointing to the RCMP’s review of the comptroller general’s report as evidence of some sort of continued criminal investigation into the fired researchers.
But police documents obtained by The Sun show the RCMP never conducted a criminal investigation into the researchers over the course of almost three years because the government never provided any evidence of wrongdoing that would justify a probe.
One employee, Roderick MacIsaac, committed suicide in late 2012 after losing his job and being publicly painted as under police investigation.
The RCMP closed the case in July 2014 and informed government. The Mounties then reopened the case file in late 2014 after reading about the comptroller general’s report in the media.
The lingering confusion over what the fired researchers were accused of, and whether government misled the public into believing there was a non-existent police investigation, has sparked renewed calls for an independent public inquiry into the case.
Health Minister Terry Lake said Thursday he’s considering asking the independent ombudsman to investigate the firings.
The ombudsman has legal power to subpoena witnesses, take testimony under oath and obtain evidence as necessary. Lake said it would be preferable to a full public inquiry, which can take several years and cost millions of dollars.
But critics pointed to a perceived conflict for incoming ombudsman Jay Chalke, set to start the job July 1, who spent the last four years working as an assistant deputy minister in the Ministry of Justice, where officials likely provided legal advice on the termination of the researchers.
That raises a potential conflict, said Graham Whitmarsh, a former deputy minister of health who fired the researchers in 2012, but has called for a public inquiry.
“I do accept the office is independent, but I would be surprised if the new ombudsperson would take this on given the inherent conflict of him still currently working for the ministry and having worked with a whole range of people who may have been involved in the investigation,” Whitmarsh said.
“That, to me, seems like a glaring conflict.”
Opposition NDP leader John Horgan said it’s a “non-starter” for Chalke to potentially investigate his former ministry colleagues.