QUEEN’S PARK, ON – NDP House Leader Gilles Bisson condemned Dalton McGuinty for shutting down the Legislature as the committee to investigate the gas plant scandal was to commence.

“Today was the last day the hearings into the gas plants scandal could have started. However, instead of getting the bottom of hundreds of millions of dollars being wasted, we have a Premier who shut the doors of the legislature, hoping this scandal will go away,” said Bisson.

On October 2, the majority of the House voted to convene a committee to investigate the Speaker’s findings of a prima facie case of privilege. The government had up to 10 sitting days to call the committee to start the investigation into why they withheld documents related to the costly power plant cancellations.

“The McGuinty Liberals sat on their hands, ran out the clock and then shut the doors of the Legislature,” said Bisson. “Sounds more like a government that’s running from a scandal than willing to get at the truth.”

Bisson said he was shocked to hear the Premier call the contempt motion over gas plants ‘spurious, phoney.’

“If Dalton McGuinty hadn’t abused his power and locked the door of the Legislature, we could be finding out the real answers about why the gas plants documents were withheld from the public, who made the decisions and how much this is really going to cost the Ontarians,” said Bisson. “We’re hearing from people across Ontario and when they use the word ‘phoney’ they’re using it to describe the Premier’s excuses. If the government has nothing to hide then they can recall the House now and let us get back to work.”