Following up on Kady O'Malley's intrepid committee-watching, the Star offers this alarming look at what the Tories may have in mind for officers of Parliament.
It's hard to believe that even this government is so control freakish that it would attempt to control every word that comes out of the mouth of independent watchdogs. So it's entirely possible - as Sheila Fraser acknowledges - that all we're talking about here is a poorly drafted document that doesn't set out clear guidelines of who is and isn't subject to PCO scrutiny of communications documents, as opposed to a deliberate targeting of the auditor-general, the information commissioner, the ethics commissioner, et al.
Regardless of whether it's part of some grand conspiracy, though, what is allegedly in that document isn't just troubling - it's insane. If it became official policy, and proved enforceable, it would be one step short of doing away with the watchdogs altogether - which would be a pretty remarkable achievement for a party elected on the promise of more accountable government.
Of course, we don't know if that's what's in the document, because only a few people have actually seen the thing. It being merely a draft, as opposed to the final policy, the government has been under no obligation to make it public. But now that the A-G has let the cat out of the bag, the Tories might do themselves a favour by clearing this up as quickly as possible.
