‘A deep reverence for Parliament’: MacKinnon defends PM Carney’s no-shows in question period

OTTAWA – Government House leader Steven MacKinnon is defending the prime minister’s commitment to parliamentary procedure, as Conservatives highlight Mark Carney’s lack of attendance during question period in the House of Commons this year.

On Tuesday, Conservative MPs held a press conference on Parliament Hill to present a cake marking Carney’s 100 missed question periods. According to the Conservatives, of the 100 absences, Carney was in Ottawa for 64.

“The prime minister has a deep reverence for Parliament,” MacKinnon insisted to CTV Question Period host Vassy Kapelos in an interview airing Sunday, when asked whether Carney’s absences are reflective of his views of Parliament’s function.

“He and I talk about it a lot,” he added, pointing to the prime minister’s international commitments, namely the G7 Leaders’ Summit, which Carney attended in France this week.

“The prime minister has an incredibly busy agenda,” MacKinnon also said. “The House of Commons is an integral part of that agenda, and will continue to be.”

When pressed by Kapelos on criticism by then-Liberal leader Justin Trudeau of the absentee rate of former prime minister Stephen Harper — saying in 2015 that “Canadians deserve a prime minister who will answer questions” — and why the party now defends the current prime minister for the same thing, MacKinnon insisted Carney is “an incredibly accessible prime minister.”

“Accessible to parliamentarians, including in the House of Commons, accessible to the media,” MacKinnon said. “His number of public appearances is head-spinning. This is a prime minister who’s constantly on the move, who’s announcing new policy and new strategy all the time.”

When pressed again on whether that accessibility should extend to taking questions from the opposition, MacKinnon said Carney “obviously” takes questions in the House of Commons especially following announcements.

“He takes questions in the House of Commons every week,” MacKinnon said. “But this is an extremely active prime minister. On many of those days that you reference, where he may or may not have been in Ottawa or around the National Capital, we’ve had how many heads of state visiting?”

On Thursday, the House of Commons rose for the summer, with MPs heading back to their constituencies for the summer break, set to return near the end of September.

Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer, meanwhile, was also asked by Kapelos in an interview on CTV Question Period airing Sunday about the prime minister’s attendance record and his party’s criticism of it, despite Harper’s dismal attendance record in 2015.

When pressed repeatedly about the comparison, Scheer insisted the current prime minister is “in a league completely of his own,” despite the relatively small difference. Carney has attended about 26 per cent of question periods compared to Harper’s 35 per cent.

Scheer was first elected to the House of Commons in 2004 and was a member of Harper’s caucus.

“The big difference between 2015 and now, is Conservatives were very proud of our economic record going to 2015,” Scheer said. “We had emerged out of the recession faster than any other country, we had balanced the budget.”

“Mark Carney is afraid to show up and answer in question period, not simply because he doesn’t like debating or being in the House, but it’s because of his record,” he added. “He’s afraid to defend it.”

With the House adjourned for the summer break, MacKinnon addressed reporters on Parliament Hill this week to list everything the Liberals say they’ve accomplished, while the Conservatives pressed them to prove their legislation has led to results.

MPs have passed more than 20 government bills since January, with a focus, the Liberals say, on the economy and law and order.

But, other legislation remains on the order paper, including bills on privacy and forced labour.

You can watch Government House leader Steven MacKinnon and Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer’s full interviews on CTV Question Period Sunday at 11 a.m. ET.