Legislative Report

Tough Session for Scandal-Plagued NDP

The spring session of the Legislature couldn’t end fast enough for the NDP. The trouble started a few days before the session began when Chequebook Lorne and the NDP decided to stroke a $275,000 to Murdoch Carriere. When more details started to surface about the payout, how poorly the harassment victims were treated, how people in ‘high places’ ignored serious harassment complaints for many years, how Murdoch Carriere was a buddy of NDP Minister Buckley Belanger, etc., things went from bad to worse

The next scandal was the NDP Caucus fraud case. Back in 1992 when Glenn Hagel was the Caucus chair, several thousands of dollars was stolen from Caucus office. Instead of taking the evidence to police, Hagel, the chief of staff, and others, decided it was best not to tell anyone the details. All of this evidence came out during the session. The result? The RCMP is currently investigating the case and now Minister of Culture, Youth and Recreation, Glenn Hagel, has resigned his Cabinet position.

And speaking of resignations, the latest veteran MLA to jump ship is Eldon Lautermilch. He’s been around since 1986. He’s also known for having a ‘checkered’ history in government and for being responsible for scandals like SPUDCO. Lautermilch is the 7th MLA to announce they won’t be seeking re-election and there are more to come! ‘Farewell Fridays’ (the name we’ve given to the resignation announcements since they typically take place on Fridays), are becoming commonplace for Lorne Calvert. How can anyone have confidence in Lorne Calvert’s NDP government when his own Cabinet doesn’t have faith in their future?

Most people hope there is an election before the next session. But with Farewell Fridays and scandals that took place this session, Lorne Calvert isn’t in a hurry to go to the polls.

Past Legislative Reports