Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Phillip Paulwell has questioned the move by the Speaker of the House of Representatives Juliet Holness to reprimand the clerk of house in a letter due to her handling of two outstanding reports from the Auditor General’s Department.

Holness, in a letter addressed to house clerk Valrie Curtis on March 22, said Curtis brought the house into disrepute when she failed to adhere to the ruling and applicable procedures when she accepted reports from the Auditor General dated December 28 and January 8.

This follows the decision taken by Parliament to return two reports to the Auditor General Department on March 22, due to an alleged breach of Section 13A of the Public Bodies Management and Accountability Act and Section 30 of the Financial Administration and Audit Act.

The Auditor General returned the reports to Parliament on Monday (March 25).

” I thought you would have gone further today because yesterday was a significant day in our Parliament when a letter which was sent to the clerk became known to us and it has caused us on this side tremendous distress, especially as we anticipate that the clerk, well we know that the clerk is about to demit office having served this Parliament for so long and the tone of it Madam Speaker, I don’t think that us as a Parliament could proceed today without having a discussion on this point and for you Madam Speaker to indicate really what motivated that action yesterday in abrading the clerk, in disciplining the clerk in a way that it was done in the public,” Paulwell said.

He commented on the matter during Tuesday’s sitting of the House of Representatives.

However, the House Speaker refused to comment on the matter publicly noting that discussions between her and the clerk are still ongoing.

“On the matter of the clerk, I advise you both for myself and the clerk that we are in dialogue and wish to say nothing else at this time,” Holness said.

Despite the House Speaker refusing to comment on the matter, the Opposition MP insisted the issue is now a public matter.

“Madam Speaker, this matter is a public matter, it occurred largely because of the email that was sent to all of us and I know that there might be discussions taking place but I don’t think that the public is satisfied of your coming today, going through the process without saying something. We were really expecting that the letter would have been withdrawn and that is really our position. So Madam Speaker I am hoping that you will say something before we proceed especially in light of our call for the letter to be withdrawn,” Paulwell added.

The Opposition has called for the letter to the clerk to be withdrawn.

• READ: House Speaker fingers clerk in mishandling of Auditor General reports