Transparency is not an option—it is a responsibility owed to Canadians. In a healthy democracy, citizens have the right to know how their money is being spent.

That is why the concerns raised these past couple of weeks about the federal government’s finances require serious attention. According to a National Post report last week, economists, the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO), and Conservatives continue to raise serious concerns about Prime Minister Mark Carney’s lack of transparency around government spending. The article pointed to approximately $40 billion in taxpayer-funded spending that has yet to be fully accounted for. Former associate deputy minister of finance and former TD Bank Chief Economist Don Drummond summed up the concern bluntly: “I’ve been involved in budgets since 1977, and I’ve never seen such a lack of transparency.” He also warned that weaker-than-expected economic performance and employment figures raise further concerns about the government’s fiscal assumptions.

Unfortunately, this isn’t new to Mr. Carney. It seems to be a recurring pattern of recent Liberal governments.

Several years ago, while serving on the House of Commons Natural Resources Committee, I questioned officials about the escalating cost overruns for TMX. I asked how construction costs climbed from $9.7 billion to $12.8 billion to $21.4 billion to $34.2 billion. What was most alarming was the project’s cost skyrocketing by $8.8 billion in just three months, without any public warning.