Retired judge called in to review B.C. Legislature spending scandal
Posted February 21, 2019 5:51 pm.
Last Updated February 21, 2019 5:55 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VICTORIA (NEWS 1130) — The explosive allegations of excessive spending at the B.C. Legislature will be reviewed by a retired judge, who will give advice on how to move forward — a decision made unanimously by all B.C. house leaders.
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The all-party Legislative Assembly Management Committee (LAMC) voted unanimously to appoint a retired judge to decide if there was misconduct by Clerk Craig James and Sergeant-At-Arms Gary Lenz.
This review is on top of one by the Auditor General and another on workplace practices. Speaker Darryl Plecas — whose report detailed the allegations last month — has recused himself from further discussion on this matter. He thinks this is the right approach.
“I think we have a path forward. I’m extremely happy to have a jurist do an independent review. I’m assuming that’s going to be a rather quick path and we’ll have to see where it all lands,” he says.
Another report from the speaker where he rebuts the responses from the officials suspended because of allegations of misusing public funds has also been released today.
Lenz and James have denied all wrongdoing.
Earlier today, Lenz and James’ lawyer asked LAMC to not release the new report until his clients had a chance to respond to its contents.
More to come…
