Search Warrant for Collins' Office

December 29, 2003

Day Two after the Raid on Government Offices

The raid on government offices in the BC Legislature poses many questions; some can be answered irrespective of the ongoing investigation.

Unlike what was done when Gordon Campbell was in opposition, everyone should benefit from the presumption of innocence, including the Ministerial Assistant who was fired while his colleague was merely suspended. That raises at least two questions. What led to the different treatment, and was Collins' MA given any severance payment?

Even if a politically appointed staff member is found guilty of a criminal offense, that is not reason enough for a minister to resign. If, however, that staff member is found to have abused confidential government information, then the Minister responsible must be held accountable and pay the appropriate political price.

The Premier, the Minister of Finance, and the Minister of Transportation have expressed surprise and disappointment. Solicitor General Rich Coleman is acting as government spokesperson and saying that most questions cannot be answered because of the on going investigation. Later they may all say that they cannot comment until the courts deal with any charges.

No one should presume that any charges will be laid against the political staff or that any member of staff is anything but innocent; however, it is important to know what risks might be involved to the public interest if a Ministerial Assistant violated confidentiality and misused information. The public has a right to know what files or issues in the offices of Judith Reid or Gary Collins were closed to the public but open to their Ministerial Assistants. Did either know of confidential details surrounding the sale of BC Rail? Did either know about details surrounding the failed Coquihalla privatization, about the particulars of the BC Ferries restructuring, or about highway construction bids? Did the Ministerial Assistant to the Minister of Finance know about any Treasury Board decisions, the details of which would never be released to the public? If the government, and the public, is to evaluate the risk of potential abuse of information, the full details should be released on what confidential files were handled by each political appointee. Nothing in the investigation process should prevent the Premier and his Ministers from answering those questions.

There is also no reason why the government cannot say whether the Solicitor General was ever made aware of who was under investigation, and if he was, when he was made aware. Did the Solicitor share any of that information with the Premier or any Minister? The RCMP, and some media outlets, have bent over backwards to assure the public that no elected representative is a person of interest in the investigation. A soft talk radio "hot-liner" emphasized that the "private offices of the Ministers were not searched". Those familiar with the legislature know that Ministers have suites and their assistants occupy one office in the suite. Everything in the suite is the Minister's office and responsibility. There is an enormous difference between being politically accountable if government information is misused as opposed to being criminally responsible for the actions of a subordinate. The comments of the police and some apologists may be correct but irrelevant on the important issue of Ministerial responsibility, if the investigation ultimately shows that confidential government information was compromised.

What files where removed from the Ministerial offices? The government knows, and that knowledge could help them speculate on the subject of the investigation. If the files were restricted to a narrow range of subjects, then the government can be also certain about the focus of the investigation. Why should government know which files were seized and not the public?

On day two after the raid the government is showing that it is already making the classical mistake in crisis management. By withholding information rather than answering every possible question, an environment is created where each tiny piece of new information will give the story "legs". The government would be well advised to answer questions in a truly open and transparent manner that demonstrates it has nothing to hide and nothing to fear.

December 28, 2003

Search Warrant for Collins' Office

According to news reports, the offices of Finance Minister Gary Collins and Transportation Minister Judith Reid were the target of search warrants served at the legislature on Sunday, December 28. It is becoming an annual tradition for major bad news to be visited upon the Campbell government at year end. Last year the Premier was in jail; this year a truck load of documents was hauled away from the legislature as part of a criminal investigation.

Reporters were quick to emphasize that the investigation concerned political staff rather than elected officials, but it immediately raises the question of "Ministerial Responsibility". On August 4, 2001, Collins, as Minister responsible, began second reading on the "Balanced Budget and Ministerial Responsibility Act (Bill 4)". Collins said "The government is also committed to individual ministerial accountability." He went on to say "This is a new government. It was elected with a significant mandate to do things differently. That's why the Premier has directed that personal accountability be included in this." The context of Collins remarks referred to accountability for balancing the budget and Ministerial pay bonuses, but Hansard is full of remarks from members of the Campbell caucus where they called for Ministers to resign or step aside at the slightest sniff of impropriety.

Surely Collins and Reid, if not Campbell, will follow their own advice, recognize the importance of and accountability for supervising key political staff, and step aside until the RCMP has completed its investigation and the courts have resolved any charges that may result. Ministerial Assistants regularly act on behalf of their Minister; Ministers must be accountable for their assistants. Maybe the lower standard that was adopted following last year's scandal will again be applied so that no Minister is held accountable for the raid on the Ministerial offices; maybe no one will ever know if budget documents were compromised. Accountability and responsibility are fine terms in the abstract; what counts is how their definitions are revealed by the actions of a government under stress.