Furey promises to release time spent practising medicine as government blocks his billing info
CBC
When Andrew Furey entered politics, his political opponents criticized him for continuing to work as a doctor, something he needs to do to maintain his licence.
Now, more than a year since he became premier, he says he will release information about how much time he's spending working as a doctor, even though his government is blocking the release of key details.
"I've done a couple of weekends on call and a couple over the Christmas holidays," Furey said Tuesday. He said he doesn't know off-hand how many total days he has spent practising but said he could provide it.
"I have nothing to hide here. I've been very open and transparent about it from Day 1, and I'm happy to disclose once a year or two what I did in the previous year."
In December, CBC News asked his office to provide exactly that information.
In a statement, the premier's office said, "He is maintaining his credentials as a surgeon to be able to return to practice after politics" but didn't say how much time that entails or how much he's billing for his services.
A spokesperson didn't respond to a request for more information.
According to the College of Physicians and Surgeons, he's required to work as a doctor for 120 days in a three-year period.
CBC News filed a series of access-to-information requests to find out how much he was doing.
The Department of Health initially refused to release how much he's been paid for practising medicine since becoming premier, saying the information is posted online.
Online records show in 2020/21 Furey billed $257,921.01, but that includes almost five months before he became premier.
CBC News appealed the decision to the provincial information and privacy commissioner.
According to a letter from the commissioner's office, the Department of Health didn't provide any justification for not releasing the information or provide a copy of the records, despite being required to by law.
It was only after the office said it would be writing a formal report that the department agreed to release the billing information.
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