One of the longest House of Commons committee filibusters in the last 10 years was the recent marathon attempt by the Liberals to prevent the prime minister’s chief of staff from testifying about foreign interference.
Throughout February and March, government members of the procedure and House affairs committee argued that Katie Telford should answer questions because of ministerial responsibility: the idea that it is up to ministers—including the prime minister—to speak on behalf of their files, staff and departments.
“This is essentially the way the executive is held to account,” said Lori Turnbull, director of Dalhousie University’s school of public administration….