Conservative Parliamentary Secretary Dean Del Mastro rises during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Thursday March 1, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
June 15, 2012 - 5:20 PM
OTTAWA - First a sleepover, now a double-dog dare.
Punchy MPs, bleary-eyed from their all-night vote marathon, were exchanging blows in the House of Commons today over Dean Del Mastro's election-spending headaches.
The Ontario MP, who normally defends the Conservatives against accusations of dirty electoral tricks, faces Elections Canada allegations that he spent too much during the 2008 campaign and tried to cover it up.
The ensuing name-calling exchanges — Tory MP Pierre Poilievre, speaking in Del Mastro's defence, daring his opposition attackers to make their accusations outside the parliamentary chamber — gave question period a distinct schoolyard flavour.
Court documents filed by an Elections Canada investigator allege Del Mastro's campaign filed a false document to the agency. The MP's official agent, Richard McCarthy, is also under investigation.
None of the claims have been proved in court, and Del Mastro insists Elections Canada never contacted him about his campaign return.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2012