Ex-integrity commissioner shows up, denies everything

Auditor’s report full of flaws, ex-integrity czar says

Christiane Ouimet says she always tried to do what is fair and right when she headed the office that champions federal whistleblowers, and a damning report by the Auditor-General that found otherwise was riddled with “flaws and erroneous facts.”

Ms. Ouimet, the former public-sector integrity commissioner who retired abruptly last fall as the audit was about to be released, appeared before the Commons public accounts committee on Thursday after three months of requests and summons. She was grateful, she said, for the opportunity to set the record straight.

... [The Auditor-General's] office has said it stands behind its report. The committee has agreed to call both the auditor and Ms. Ouimet to the next meeting to deal with the issues face to face.

Ms. Ouimet, who became the first-ever integrity commissioner in 2007, received a severance package worth $534,000 in addition to her normal pension benefits when she abruptly retired last fall.

Apparently Ms. Ouimet didn't explain why it took her three months to show up.