PM to call limited Mulroney-Schreiber probe.

[Michael Bluth]

Here is the link.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is expected to establish a limited public inquiry into the Mulroney-Schreiber saga after receiving a report from an independent third party, CTV News has learned.

Sources say independent adviser David Johnston recommended to the prime minister that the government set up a narrow inquiry into Brian Mulroney's business dealings with former arms dealer Karlheinz Schreiber.

He proposed the inquiry focus on whether Mulroney acted improperly in 1993 when he accepted cash payments from Schreiber to lobby on his behalf to promote a German-built military vehicle.

Johnson rejected a full-scale inquiry that would re-examine allegations of possible kickbacks in the 1988 sale of Airbus jets to Air Canada, arguing the matter has already been thoroughly investigated by the RCMP.

A limited inquiry is the right thing to do.

It allows people find out more information about the Mulroney/Schreiber arrangement without the nightmare of a wide-ranging probe a la Gomery or Whitewater.

[guyser]

Is there a mechanism in this country for a proper inquiry?. I refer to our southern neighbours who seem to have it right.

The lawyers send out the invites, they due the diligence, have all the Q's lined up and a House commitee is set..a la Barry Bonds , clinton etc.

Lets face it, our politicians , from all sides , just do not have the brains to know the hows and whys a guy like Mulroney would operate. Accountants, especially forensic ones, etc, do have that knowledge. And I will grant you Harper probably does have the knowledge of where to look, but obviously he cannot be the one asking the questions.

Do we have something like this? If we do and didnt use it, then we are stupid. It should have been used for Gomery, it should have been used for others also. Shawinigate, Zaccardelli.....

[Michael Bluth]

Is there a mechanism in this country for a proper inquiry?. I refer to our southern neighbours who seem to have it right.

The lawyers send out the invites, they due the diligence, have all the Q's lined up and a House commitee is set..a la Barry Bonds , clinton etc.

Do we have something like this? If we do and didnt use it, then we are stupid. It should have been used for Gomery, it should have been used for others also. Shawinigate, Zaccardelli.....

The mechanism is there in theory.

The commons committee is the equivalent of the house committee in the U.S.

My suspicion is the much larger budgets for committes in the House make for much more formalized proceedings.

For example, I know that Representatives in the U.S. will have a staffer assigned to a given committee solely. Whereas here there just isn't money in the Members Office Budget for that level of staffing.

[capricorn]

It allows people find out more information about the Mulroney/Schreiber arrangement without the nightmare of a wide-ranging probe a la Gomery or Whitewater.

Harper wants the Ethics Committee to complete its work before the inquiry gets underway. As he said, the testimony given at the Ethics Committee will be useful to the inquiry:

“This will ensure that the public inquiry will usefully build on any testimony heard by the ethics committee,”

http://www.canada.com/globaltv/national/st...bf-c12135f8c843

He is showing respect for the parliamentary process, regardless of the fact that Commons Committees are partisan in nature. It also puts to bed the notion that Harper wanted Schreiber extradited ASAP to prevent embarrassment to the current government. Schreiber will be needed for the inquiry so he is given a reprieve from his eventual extradition to face charges in Germany.

[Oleg Bach]

Harper wants the Ethics Committee to complete its work before the inquiry gets underway. As he said, the testimony given at the Ethics Committee will be useful to the inquiry:

“This will ensure that the public inquiry will usefully build on any testimony heard by the ethics committee,”

http://www.canada.com/globaltv/national/st...bf-c12135f8c843

He is showing respect for the parliamentary process, regardless of the fact that Commons Committees are partisan in nature. It also puts to bed the notion that Harper wanted Schreiber extradited ASAP to prevent embarrassment to the current government. Schreiber will be needed for the inquiry so he is given a reprieve from his eventual extradition to face charges in Germany.

Harper has no ethics since he took up American citizenship.

[capricorn]

Harper has no ethics since he took up American citizenship.

You have a source for this?

[BubberMiley]

I have it on good authority that the majority of Canadians don't want an inquiry. I guess it just shows his contempt for the wishes of the Canadian people.

[Oleg Bach]

I have it on good authority that the majority of Canadians don't want an inquiry. I guess it just shows his contempt for the wishes of the Canadian people.

It appears to be self endulgence thatreeks of self importance. The kids in Ottawa must be running out of things to do seeing the nation is running on a type of auto-pilot.

[capricorn]

I have it on good authority that the majority of Canadians don't want an inquiry. I guess it just shows his contempt for the wishes of the Canadian people.

Do I detect some sarcasm here BM?

Some posters on this board, who will remain unnamed, think that Harper governs by polls. I suppose his decision to go ahead with a public inquiry goes contrary to that claim. After all, 52% of Canadians polled did not think an inquiry is necessary. This Harper guy can really confuse people.