Catherine Fife MPP, Waterloo

Government of Ontario

Statement from MPP Catherine Fife on Release of Unaudited Public Accounts

Published on October 3, 2016

“Today’s attempt by the Premier to publicly undermine the legitimate concerns of the Auditor General shows that once again she is prepared to put the needs of the Liberal Party ahead of the needs of Ontario families. ‎ ‎ ‎

It is extremely disappointing and worrisome that this government would release Public Accounts today without the Auditor General’s approval.  Ontarians have every right to be skeptical of the accounting games the Liberals are playing with public accounts.

It sets a dangerous precedent to just simply by-pass an Independent officer of the Legislature when a dispute arises.  The issue with the government’s treatment of pension assets should have been settled with the Auditor General and Public Accounts should have been released with her approval and sign-off.

What happened today is no more than political maneuvering on the part of a Liberal government that is more concerned with the appearance of a balanced budget than they are with actually addressing the current financial status of our province.”