本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛三党领袖当天同意，哈帕拖了一天后也同意了。但是两个星期过了，至今还是没有出来。
哈帕对财经的控制能力不敢恭维，上台两年支出增长巨快，花光政府积蓄，但是对官员的控制能力值得惊叹！
Cost of Afghan mission being kept secret
By Martin O’hanlon, THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA - On a desk in a bureaucrat's office sits a big number that could blast the Afghan war debate back into front-page headlines.
But voters may not get to read those headlines until after the Oct. 14 election - unless Prime Minister Stephen Harper gives his OK to release a report on the true multibillion-dollar cost of Canada's Afghanistan mission.
Kevin Page, Parliament's budget officer, says he would like to release his report but he needs all-party consent. He's worried about interfering with the election.
Opposition parties were tripping over themselves Tuesday to give their approval - and to press Harper to do the same.
NDP Leader Jack Layton quickly penned a letter to the prime minister.
"The parliamentary budget office has been able to analyze the total actuarial costs extending beyond your stated 2011 end-date; including the ongoing costs of equipment and veteran's care," he wrote.
"I believe it is imperative to release this information immediately. I request you inform the parliamentary budget officer of your party's consent to release."
Layton said the public has a right to know how taxpayer dollars are being used.
"An election is no time to start shutting the doors on important public information on a key issue that's facing Canadians as they make their choice," he said at a campaign stop in Welland, Ont.
Liberal Leader Stephane Dion accused Harper of "hiding" the cost of the war.
"Canadians need to know the truth," he said. "We have the most secretive government in our history trying to hide these kinds of facts. We need to have that before the election."
Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe said it would be "immoral, indecent, irresponsible" for Harper not to allow release of the information.
"It's always important that we know what we're paying, especially when we see that a large majority of Quebecers - and I would say also a majority of Canadians - are opposing the mission in Afghanistan as it is," he said.
"An election is a time to discuss serious questions. War and peace, that is a serious question. The Canadian mission in Afghanistan is a serious question."
Harper wouldn't comment on whether he would give his consent, saying only that the budget officer is independent and "he can make his own decisions."
When pressed by reporters Harper spokesman Dimitri Soudas said Harper doesn't oppose the release but refused to say if he would give his consent.
"But I can tell you that we have very significant provisions for Afghan war and we are not over budget for those," Harper added in Kitchener, Ont.
The minority Conservative government has estimated the cost of the six-year mission at under $8 billion. If the new figures - believed to be more complete and accurate than previous estimates - are much higher, it could be bad news for Harper.
Polls have repeatedly shown that Canadians are lukewarm to the mission, especially in the key electoral battleground of Quebec where Harper must make gains to have any chance of winning his coveted majority.
And critics suggest cost overruns in the Afghan mission could erase the government's shrinking surplus and put the country into deficit, especially given the economic slowdown.
While Canadians have been left confused about the real cost of the mission, Americans have been bombarded with information about what their wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost.
Money aside, the Afghan mission has been a heavy burden for Canada with 97 soldiers and one diplomat killed.
Canada has more than 2,000 personnel based in the dangerous Kandahar region.更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
哈帕对财经的控制能力不敢恭维，上台两年支出增长巨快，花光政府积蓄，但是对官员的控制能力值得惊叹！
Cost of Afghan mission being kept secret
By Martin O’hanlon, THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA - On a desk in a bureaucrat's office sits a big number that could blast the Afghan war debate back into front-page headlines.
But voters may not get to read those headlines until after the Oct. 14 election - unless Prime Minister Stephen Harper gives his OK to release a report on the true multibillion-dollar cost of Canada's Afghanistan mission.
Kevin Page, Parliament's budget officer, says he would like to release his report but he needs all-party consent. He's worried about interfering with the election.
Opposition parties were tripping over themselves Tuesday to give their approval - and to press Harper to do the same.
NDP Leader Jack Layton quickly penned a letter to the prime minister.
"The parliamentary budget office has been able to analyze the total actuarial costs extending beyond your stated 2011 end-date; including the ongoing costs of equipment and veteran's care," he wrote.
"I believe it is imperative to release this information immediately. I request you inform the parliamentary budget officer of your party's consent to release."
Layton said the public has a right to know how taxpayer dollars are being used.
"An election is no time to start shutting the doors on important public information on a key issue that's facing Canadians as they make their choice," he said at a campaign stop in Welland, Ont.
Liberal Leader Stephane Dion accused Harper of "hiding" the cost of the war.
"Canadians need to know the truth," he said. "We have the most secretive government in our history trying to hide these kinds of facts. We need to have that before the election."
Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe said it would be "immoral, indecent, irresponsible" for Harper not to allow release of the information.
"It's always important that we know what we're paying, especially when we see that a large majority of Quebecers - and I would say also a majority of Canadians - are opposing the mission in Afghanistan as it is," he said.
"An election is a time to discuss serious questions. War and peace, that is a serious question. The Canadian mission in Afghanistan is a serious question."
Harper wouldn't comment on whether he would give his consent, saying only that the budget officer is independent and "he can make his own decisions."
When pressed by reporters Harper spokesman Dimitri Soudas said Harper doesn't oppose the release but refused to say if he would give his consent.
"But I can tell you that we have very significant provisions for Afghan war and we are not over budget for those," Harper added in Kitchener, Ont.
The minority Conservative government has estimated the cost of the six-year mission at under $8 billion. If the new figures - believed to be more complete and accurate than previous estimates - are much higher, it could be bad news for Harper.
Polls have repeatedly shown that Canadians are lukewarm to the mission, especially in the key electoral battleground of Quebec where Harper must make gains to have any chance of winning his coveted majority.
And critics suggest cost overruns in the Afghan mission could erase the government's shrinking surplus and put the country into deficit, especially given the economic slowdown.
While Canadians have been left confused about the real cost of the mission, Americans have been bombarded with information about what their wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost.
Money aside, the Afghan mission has been a heavy burden for Canada with 97 soldiers and one diplomat killed.
Canada has more than 2,000 personnel based in the dangerous Kandahar region.更多精彩文章及讨论，请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net