'Nothing at all': Ottawa mayor waiting for word on public inquiry into LRT
Two weeks after the Ontario government called a public inquiry into Ottawa's beleaguered LRT system, Mayor Jim Watson and the city's auditor general are waiting to see the terms of reference for the investigation.
"Nothing at all. I haven't received anything in writing, no phone calls so we anxiously await what the parameters are," said Watson in an interview with Newstalk 580 CFRA's Ottawa Now with Kristy Cameron.
Transportation Minister Caroline Mulroney announced on Nov. 17 that Ontario is launching a public inquiry "to get to the bottom" of the issues facing the LRT system.
Mulroney said the Ontario government plans to launch the public inquiry "as soon as possible", with the scope of the inquiry and its terms of reference released in the coming weeks.
Watson says Auditor General Nathalie Gougeon is waiting to see the terms of reference to determine how to proceed with an audit of the LRT system. Council voted this fall to ask Gougeon to investigate the LRT project.
"She wants to make sure she's not duplicating efforts because, as you know, council asked the auditor general to go and review aspects that caused the system to fail us. So I hope the province would communicate with us directly," said Watson.
"It would be nice to get a letter from the minister explaining what the parameters are, when it's starting and what the ground rules are."
The auditor general's work plan for 2022-2023 includes an audit of the Stage 1 LRT procurement and implementation.
"Once the OAG has completed sufficient planning to further define the scope of the audit, we will return to Council to provide an update and a preliminary budget," said Gougeon, in a report from Friday's Audit Committee meeting.
The auditor general tells council that she is waiting to see the scope of the Ontario government's public inquiry to determine whether to expand her own investigation.
"Once we better understand the scope of the province’s public inquiry, additional audit/investigation work on Stage 1 LRT may be initiated," said Gougeon. "The scope of the province’s public inquiry will be considered in the planning stages of the OAG LRT audit to avoid duplication of efforts and ensure prudent spending of taxpayer dollars."
Gougeon told council last month that the audit would focus on two main areas. The first is activities relating to the award, construction and "go live" of Stage 1 of LRT to ensure they were undertaken with the appropriate transparency, due diligence and oversight. The second audit will look at the effectiveness of the operation and maintenance.
Ottawa's LRT system resumed running on Nov. 12 after a 54-day shutdown following the derailment on Sept. 19. It was the second derailment on the two-year system in six weeks.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trend Line Anger, pessimism towards federal government reach six-year high: Nanos survey
Most Canadians in March reported feeling angry or pessimistic towards the federal government than at any point in the last six years, according to a survey by Nanos Research.
BREAKING 14 suspects arrested in grandparent scam targeting seniors across Canada: Ontario police
An interprovincial investigation into an 'emergency grandparents scam' that targeted seniors across Canada has led to the arrest of 14 suspects, Ontario Provincial Police say.
Motion to allow keffiyehs at Ontario legislature fails
A motion to reverse a ban on the keffiyeh within Queen’s Park failed to receive unanimous consent Thursday just moments after Ontario Premier Doug Ford reiterated his view that prohibiting the garment in the House is divisive.
B.C. child killer's lawyer walks out of review hearing
The lawyer representing child-killer Allan Schoenborn walked out of his client's annual review hearing Wednesday – abruptly ending proceedings marked by tense exchanges and several outbursts.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Juror dismissed in Trump hush money trial as prosecutors ask for former president to face contempt
Prosecutors in the hush money trial of Donald Trump asked Thursday for the former president to be held in contempt and fined because of seven social media posts that they said violated a judge's gag order barring him from attacking witnesses.
Why drivers in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada will see a gas price spike, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
It's the biggest election in history. Here's why few Indians in Canada will take part
In the Indian general election that gets underway on Friday, almost a billion people are eligible to vote, but a vast majority of the overseas Indian community in Canada won't be casting a ballot.