Opposition MPs are demanding that Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government release the governing framework documents for three powerful new federal agencies managing billions of taxpayer dollars — documents the government now claims are secret.
The agencies — the Major Projects Office, the Defence Investment Agency, and Build Canada Homes — were established to accelerate major infrastructure, defence procurement, and affordable housing projects. But their framework agreements and business plans, which define how they operate and what exceptions they enjoy from federal rules, have not been made public.
Opposition Calls Secrecy “Alarming”
NDP interim leader Don Davies called the situation unacceptable.
“These entities will manage massive sums of public money,” Davies said. “Framework agreements have historically been public — it’s alarming and it’s unacceptable that they’re now being kept secret.”
Bloc Québécois MP Marie-Hélène Gaudreau accused the government of continuing a “culture of secrecy and opacity.”
“Taxpayers have a right to know how their money is spent,” she said. “The Liberals have given themselves the power to bypass laws with the Major Projects Office.”
Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer said the pattern is familiar.
“We’ve seen this before — huge costs and no accountability,” Scheer said. “This government adds bureaucracy while transparency vanishes.”
Documents Once Public Now Classified
CBC News reported that Public Services and Procurement Canada, which houses the Defence Investment Agency, confirmed that both the framework agreement and business plan exist and were approved by Treasury Board, but they are now classified.
Historically, Treasury Board guidance treated such documents as public records. A 1990s government website — now archived — stated that framework documents “are generally treated as public documents and are made available, on request, to any Canadian.”
Despite multiple access-to-information requests, neither the Privy Council Office nor the Department of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities has released the documents.
Critics Warn of Eroding Accountability
Davies expressed concern that the Carney government, early in its mandate, is embedding structures that resist scrutiny.
“Mr. Carney may be importing private-sector habits that don’t fit public governance,” he said. “We’re talking about taxpayer money, not corporate capital.”
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May called the lack of transparency a “red flag.”
“You can’t build public trust when large new agencies are empowered to move fast but unaccountably,” May said. “That’s a recipe for disaster.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s office went further, urging the government to scrap the agencies altogether.
“The answer to bureaucratic inefficiency is not more bureaucracy,” his office said.
Democracy Watch: Secrecy May Breach Law
Duff Conacher, co-founder of Democracy Watch, said withholding these foundational records violates Canada’s open-government principles.
“It’s clearly illegal to create new government agencies and keep their startup records secret,” he said. “This excessive secrecy denies the public’s right to know — and it’s a recipe for corruption and waste.”
While the Carney government insists the agencies need “flexibility” to move faster on major files, pressure is mounting in Parliament for it to restore transparency and release the governing documents — long considered key to democratic oversight.
