“It’s disappointing that Premier Moe has instructed his MLAs to run interference for Jeremy Harrison,” said Opposition House Leader Vicki Mowat. “After 17 years, the Sask. Party has become entitled and thinks the rules don’t apply to them.”
Sask. Party MLAs used their majority to rewrite one motion and vote down two others moved by Opposition House Leader Vicki Mowat.
As it was originally worded, the first motion would have seen Premier Moe, Minister Harrison, House Leader Lori Carr, and Senior Advisor to the Premier Reg Downs testify before the Committee. The government members used their majority to rewrite the motion so no one will be called to testify.
The second motion would have seen the committee appoint an independent investigator to carry out an investigation into all of the allegations made by the Speaker on May 16 and the Moe government’s subsequent cover-up and lies.
The third motion would have had an independent investigator look into the allegation that Jeremy Harrison brought a long gun to the Legislative Building.
“Either the Premier lied or his minister lied. It can be both but it can’t be neither,” said Ethics and Democracy Critic Meara Conway. “After 17 years, this tired and out-of-touch government can’t be trusted to do the right thing and hold themselves accountable with a full investigation.”
The Moe government favours a highly limited investigation through the Legislature's anti-harassment policy, which does not have the scope to investigate allegations of guns, staff-on-member harassment or the Moe government's subsequent cover-up and lies.
Premier Moe initially called the Speaker’s allegations “unequivocally false” and has maintained that the Speaker has “sour grapes”.
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