OTTAWA – Member of Parliament John Rafferty (Thunder Bay-Rainy River) used his Members’ Statement in the House of Commons to slam the Conservative government’s budget leaks and warn that the RCMP may be called in to investigate the practice.
Rafferty made the following statement in the House of Commons today:
Mr. Speaker – the contents of the federal budget are secret for good reason-because knowing where $300 billion of public money is being spent is valuable information.
A reporter once leaked details of the federal budget and was charged with possession of stolen goods.
Recently, a Conservative staffer was caught red-handed shopping around budget information to lobbyists for his own financial gain.
And just three days ago – someone from the office of the Science and Technology Minister contacted the newsroom at the Thunder Bay Chronicle journal directly and released specific details of budget items.
And it gets worse.
Local Conservative candidates-with no security clearance and no accountability-also leaked budget details this week and have tried to use this information for electoral gain.
Who else knows the contents of the budget? Conservative donors? Lobbyists? And are the Conservatives giving this information away or selling it?
Should these leaks be proven true Mr. Speaker I will be asking the RCMP to investigate this Conservative government-once again.”
Following Question Period Rafferty said he will be listening intently to the budget presentation to ensure that the needs of working families in his riding have been respected, and to determine whether or not the Conservative government can be trusted to continue governing.