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Whistleblowing committee to be revived

The Yukon Party's commitment to introduce whistleblower legislation is in the mail. So says Elaine Taylor, minister of the Public Service Commission.

The Yukon Party’s commitment to introduce whistleblower legislation is in the mail.

So says Elaine Taylor, minister of the Public Service Commission.

On Tuesday, she was asked by Jan Stick, the NDP’s MLA for Riverdale South, whether the government would move swiftly to create a law to protect workers who expose corruption or other wrongdoing.

Certainly, replied Taylor. Letters have been mailed out to both opposition leaders, inviting them to appoint members to an all-party committee set up to examine just such a matter.

That was news to Stick. The NDP hasn’t yet received this correspondence.

The Yukon Party promised in 2006 to create whistleblower legislation. But since forming a select committee to study the matter in 2007, opposition parties have accused the government of doing little more than foot-drag on the matter.

One year ago, the NDP’s Steve Cardiff tried to table a minority report on whistleblower legislation. But he was shot down by then-Speaker Ted Staffen.

Under the legislature’s standing rules, any report must be signed by a committee chair before it’s tabled.

Yesterday, Jan Stick also tried to table the report. But Brad Cathers, the Yukon Party’s MLA for Lake Laberge, protested. Speaker David Laxton said he’d consider the matter.

Contact John Thompson at johnt@yukon-news.com