Breach-of-trust suit filed against N.L. finance director

The Newfoundland and Labrador government is taking the suspended financial director of the house of assembly to court in an attemptto recoup some of the money spent in the legislative spending scandal.

Bill Murray was suspended in June 2006 as director of financial operations of the house of assembly. He has been on leave since.

Later that month, Auditor General John Noseworthy named Murray in a report that showed both excessive payments in constituency allowances and untendered payments for keepsakes like fridge magnets. In all, Noseworthy found more than $4 million in contested spending.

In a statement of claim filed this month at Newfoundland Supreme Court, the government says Murray was in a breach of trust to the legislature "and to the people generally."

The claim cites Murray as a key figure in the overpayments to politicians, and in more than $2.6 million in untendered payments made to private companies including one linked to Murray himself for things like fridge magnets, lapel pins and key chains.

The claim says Murray "signed or approved virtually 100% of the [constituency allowance] claims and sent them for processing and payment, and in doing so, was in reckless disregard for the limits" placed on politicians who were named in a series of Noseworthy's audits last year.

Murray has not yet filed a statement of defence.

Noseworthy found that five politicians former cabinet minister Ed Byrne, a Progressive Conservative; Liberals Wally Andersen, Percy Barrett and Jim Walsh; and New Democrat Randy Collins together receivedabout $1.6 million more in their constituency claims than they were due.

The claim says that to enable those payments, Murray "would have had to transfer money from the other budget areas of the house of assembly."

The claim also includes Noseworthy's finding that Murray had a personal stake in one of the companies that received untendered business through the legislative spending scandal.

In addition to more than $2.6 million paid over seven years to companies for the keepsakes, Noseworthy found that Unique Keepsakes a company that Noseworthy said was controlled by Murray and/or his wife received $170,401 from the legislature.

"[Murray] failed utterly in the professional or dutiful discharge of his responsibilities as a trusted manager and brought the house of assembly and the public service generally into disrepute," the claim says.

The government does not cite how much money it intends to try to recoup.

Noseworthy's reports have had a strong effect on politics in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Earlier this month, the government released a report by Derek Green the chief justice of the Newfoundland Supreme Court's trial division that called for a top-to-bottom overhaul in how legislative finances are managed.

Among other things, Green recommended strong external financial controls to tackle what he called a "broad failure" in management and oversight of the legislature's books.