In Ottawa, Democracy Watch and the national Government Ethics Coalition called on the Conservative Cabinet to go further than the recommendations of the House Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics Committee by changing the federal Lobbying Act and enforcement system in 10 key ways to finally end secret, unethical lobbying of the federal government.

"The time for accountability has arrived."

These were the first words written by Stephen Harper in the Conservatives' 2006 election platform, "Stand Up for Canada." Indeed, if there is an animating theme in what would become the Conservatives' winning election message in 2006, it was the Tories' insistence that they would inaugurate an era of transparent and accountable government that would "replace old-style politics with a new vision."

Among the proposals designed to restore accountability and transparency to government, the Tories promised to:

1. "Clean up the procurement of government contracts."

2. "Ensure truth in budgeting."

OTTAWA - As representatives of 60 countries gather in Brasilia, Brazil to present their two-year action plans at the first international Open Government Partnership (OGP) meeting, the nation-wide Open Government Coalition, Government Ethics Coalition and Money in Politics Coalition, made up of more than 70 citizen groups in total with three million members (all co-ordinated by Democracy Watch), called on the OGP Steering Committee to reject the federal Conservatives' Action Plan for failing to fulfill its own commitment to increase government integrity.

So an outfit called the Board of Internal Economy, made up of politicians, has just held a behind-closed-doors, unrecorded hearing and will now judge and issue a secret ruling on whether a politician from another political party (former Bloc Québecois party leader Gilles Duceppe) violated vague, contradictory spending rules -- rules created by politicians who also interpret and enforce them.

Oh, and I almost forgot, the ruling cannot be appealed in court.

As the validity of same-sex marriage for non-residents is thrown into question and striking workers outside the Ottawa Booth street Salvation Army fall out of the mainstream media, you begin to wonder: how do you get reliable, alternative information about these and other important issues? This week at the toolkit we're holding politicians accountable, for their policies, for inaction on our history and for systemic oppressions.