Election act changes could muzzle report on probe into robocalls, lawyer warns.
"A clause muzzling investigators in the Conservatives’ new election act could prevent Elections Canada from ever reporting on the outcome of its investigation into fraudulent and deceptive calls in the 2011 campaign, says a former lawyer for Elections Canada.
The Conservatives promised to pass legislation toughening election rules in March 2012, when Canadians learned of allegations of fraudulen...t telephone calls in the “robocalls” scandal in the May 2011 election.
But the bill tabled by the government earlier this month actually may prevent Marc Mayrand, the chief electoral officer, from reporting to Parliament on the results of an investigation into allegations of dirty calls across the country, says James Sprague, who was senior general counsel at Elections Canada until he retired in 2006.
The new act would forbid the Commissioner of Canada Elections, Yves Cote — who is in charge of investigating election crime — from disclosing “any information relating to an investigation that comes to their knowledge in the exercise of their powers.”
http://o.canada.com/news/election-act-changes-could-muzzle-report-on-probe-into-robocalls-lawyer-warns/See More
"A clause muzzling investigators in the Conservatives’ new election act could prevent Elections Canada from ever reporting on the outcome of its investigation into fraudulent and deceptive calls in the 2011 campaign, says a former lawyer for Elections Canada.
The Conservatives promised to pass legislation toughening election rules in March 2012, when Canadians learned of allegations of fraudulen...t telephone calls in the “robocalls” scandal in the May 2011 election.
But the bill tabled by the government earlier this month actually may prevent Marc Mayrand, the chief electoral officer, from reporting to Parliament on the results of an investigation into allegations of dirty calls across the country, says James Sprague, who was senior general counsel at Elections Canada until he retired in 2006.
The new act would forbid the Commissioner of Canada Elections, Yves Cote — who is in charge of investigating election crime — from disclosing “any information relating to an investigation that comes to their knowledge in the exercise of their powers.”
http://o.canada.com/news/election-act-changes-could-muzzle-report-on-probe-into-robocalls-lawyer-warns/See More
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