A court has said it won't order the release of a controversial auditor general's report into government spending during last year's G8 summit.
A Federal Court of Canada judge ruled Thursday against activists who were seeking the release of the report before Monday's election, saying the group should have filed its suit weeks earlier.
Avaaz, a web-based organization, had argued this week in Toronto that, under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Canadians had a right to see the report before the election.
Auditor general Sheila Fraser has steadfastly refused to release the final report until after the election. However, drafts of the report leaked to the media suggested the government misled Parliament about the true cost of the summit of world leaders, held last June near Huntsville, Ont.
Fraser has said the report could be released only when parliament is sitting.
The Avaaz filing argued the Auditor General Act does not prohibit the release of reports when parliament is not in session.
Justice Simon Noel wrote in his decision Thursday that had Avaaz filed its lawsuit weeks ago, the court may have been able to hear the case and rule on the matter.
"It is said that 'haste makes waste.' Surely, 'waste' in constitutional matters is not a possibility that the court can validly accept if it is to acquit itself of its judicial duties," Noel wrote.
"The public interest is not better served by having the court decide on the drop of a dime an important constitutional question."
Noel wrote that it wasn't clear whether Fraser's interpretation of the Auditor General Act was incorrect, but the question was worth exploring when the courts have enough time.
Federal party leaders agreed during the campaign that the report should be made public.
Source: http://www.montrealgazette.com
A Federal Court of Canada judge ruled Thursday against activists who were seeking the release of the report before Monday's election, saying the group should have filed its suit weeks earlier.
Avaaz, a web-based organization, had argued this week in Toronto that, under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Canadians had a right to see the report before the election.
Auditor general Sheila Fraser has steadfastly refused to release the final report until after the election. However, drafts of the report leaked to the media suggested the government misled Parliament about the true cost of the summit of world leaders, held last June near Huntsville, Ont.
Fraser has said the report could be released only when parliament is sitting.
The Avaaz filing argued the Auditor General Act does not prohibit the release of reports when parliament is not in session.
Justice Simon Noel wrote in his decision Thursday that had Avaaz filed its lawsuit weeks ago, the court may have been able to hear the case and rule on the matter.
"It is said that 'haste makes waste.' Surely, 'waste' in constitutional matters is not a possibility that the court can validly accept if it is to acquit itself of its judicial duties," Noel wrote.
"The public interest is not better served by having the court decide on the drop of a dime an important constitutional question."
Noel wrote that it wasn't clear whether Fraser's interpretation of the Auditor General Act was incorrect, but the question was worth exploring when the courts have enough time.
Federal party leaders agreed during the campaign that the report should be made public.
Source: http://www.montrealgazette.com
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