EDMONTON – Alberta Premier Jim Prentice is refusing to discuss his decision to defy a legislature committee over funding for the auditor general.
Prentice sparred with reporters at a news conference Wednesday, saying the issue is not about his actions but rather the budget of the auditor general.
“The auditor general of Alberta is currently the best funded auditor general in Canada by a country mile. In fact, by two country miles,” said Prentice.
“The auditor general of Alberta has the highest total budget, they have the largest number of staff (per capita and) they have the largest payroll.”
The auditor general’s department, with a $27.3-million budget, has called that an unfair comparison given that its mandate and workload are much broader compared with other provinces.
Reporters asked Prentice three times to address concerns stemming from his announcement last week that he would not honour the decision of the all-party legislative offices committee to restore $546,000 in funding cuts to the auditor general.
Three times Prentice refused and ended the questioning by walking out of the room.
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For weeks, Prentice has made it clear that all departments are facing reductions because the collapse in oil prices has drained $7 billion from the treasury.
READ MORE: Looming Alberta budget cuts have union leaders fearful of what’s to come
Last week, the auditor general’s office appeared before the legislature offices committee, which oversees the budgets of arms-length watchdog agencies such as the auditor general and the ethics commissioner.
At that time, some Tories on the committee joined with the opposition to restore the $546,000 cut, saying they agreed with auditor general Merwan Saher that it would impair his effectiveness and that the office returns millions of dollars more in found savings.
READ MORE: Alberta legislature committee claws back cash from auditor general
The next day, Prentice told reporters he would not honour that vote.
“Are you overturning the (committee’s) decision?” a reporter asked him at the time.
“Yes,” he replied, adding, “(The committee) can meet and they can discuss it, but at the end of the day the budget of the government of Alberta will reflect the realities that we are grappling with.”
He said Finance Minister Robin Campbell’s next budget “will not include increased funding to the auditor general.”
Campbell, standing next to Prentice at the time, said he had talked to the committee chair, backbench PC MLA Matt Jeneroux, and said the committee would be meeting again to reverse the decision.
On Tuesday, the committee, which is dominated by government Progressive Conservatives, met and did just that. All eight Tories voted to claw back the money while Liberal Laurie Blakeman and the NDP’s David Eggen dissented.
Jeneroux said no one directed him to call the meeting and that the decision was made independently.
Opposition politicians say the move sets a dangerous precedent and indicates that Prentice’s power in the legislature is growing so quickly, it is now bypassing traditional legislative checks and balances.
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