WATCH: Senators who rang up questionable expenses have run out of time to challenge the findings of an audit. Many of them have decided to plead their case in arbitration. As Mike Le Couteur discovered, that means even more of your money will be spent to investigate.
OTTAWA – Senators have until the end of today to decide whether to pay back dubious expenses flagged by the auditor general, or challenge the audit’s findings before a special arbitrator.
Today marks the end of a 10-day grace period for senators named in the auditor general’s report to decide whether to repay their questioned claims, or seek to have them quashed by former Supreme Court justice Ian Binnie.
The names of those senators are expected to be made public this afternoon, but there are already several to cross off the list.
Four of the most influential senators – Speaker Leo Housakos, his deputy Nicole Eaton, government leader Claude Carignan and Liberal leader James Cowan – have already repaid about $20,000 in questionable claims.
Former Speaker Noel Kinsella paid back about $9,400 including a $5,663 tab for a trip he and his wife took to his brother-in-law’s funeral.
Also this week, Conservative Sen. Janis Johnson repaid the $22,706 the auditor general said she owed for questionable travel claims.
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