It took MPs long enough to respond, but one supposes that it’s about time they did. On Thursday of last week, the Information Commissioner issued her damning special report on the RCMP destroying records that were under Access to Information requests, related to the long-gun registry, and the government is now proposing legislation to make it retroactively legal (more in my column here). No MP other than Wayne Easter bothered to actually say something until yesterday – five days later – at which point the committees decided to get involved. The NDP are moving a motion in Ethics committee, which has jurisdiction over Access to Information policy, while the Liberals are proposing similar hearings in the Public Safety committee where they can haul the RCMP Commissioner before them. Still, it’s another week’s delay, and there’s no guarantee they’ll get the hearings given the limited number of sitting days left, and the fact that government MPs can block their request in camera. That having been said, it looks like Suzanne Legault’s recommendation that charges be laid for the destruction of those records might actually come to fruition, as the Attorney General’s office did forward the request on to the Director of Public Prosecutions, who in turn has asked the OPP to investigate. We’ll see if the government proposes to still go ahead with retroactively changing the law while there is an active police investigation, but if they stick to their guns, that they’re just “closing a loophole” (which is not true), then they just might.

Good reads:

• David Reevely takes a look at Mike Duffy’s Hansard record in the Senate.
• Kevin Milligan offers an assessment of the NDP’s budget proposals in Alberta, and there’s a big hole in their projections.
• The “muzzled scientists” debate is rearing its head again, but it still neglects the selectivity problem of which scientists should be “allowed” to be unmuzzled.
• Canada is threatening a trade war with the Americans over country of origin labelling.
• Another Conservative MP, John Williamson, is also whinging that his bill on stripping misbehaving parliamentarians of their pensions is “stuck” in the Senate.

Odds and ends:

Paul Wells chats with Brian Mulroney (and I still say that Mulroney over-estimates Mulcair’s debating abilities).

A recount leading to a tie in the PEI election was settled by a coin toss, as required by law, reinforcing the point that every vote counts.

The Queen met with members of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders – Cpl. Cirillo’s regiment, for whom she is Colonel-in-Chief.