The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) has filed a complaint with Elections Canada against Maria Minna, MP for Beaches-East York over a pamphlet issued in her riding during the election writ period that apparently used Parliamentary resources costing taxpayers $25,000. CTF Ontario Director, Kevin Gaudet, said "the pamphlet amounts to election advertising and its cost should not be borne by the taxpayers of Canada".
The complaint states that "The pamphlet arrived in riding mailboxes Tuesday September, 9th, after the election had been called on the 7th. The contents of the mail-out are clearly partisan, arrived during a write period, are not authorized by Ms. Minna's official agent, and apparently used Parliamentary resources for preparation and delivery".
The same content as that of the pamphlet appears on Ms. Minna's election website which supports the claim the pamphlet amounts to election advertising. Ironically, in the pamphlet, Ms. Minna's criticizes Jack Layton for the exact same practice - using mail-outs for partisan purposes. She calculates each mail-out costs taxpayers $25,000.
Gaudet concluded, "these MP mail-outs ought to be cancelled. Ms. Minna and the Liberals should pay for this, not taxpayers".
