ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling out Premier John Hogan for allowing MHA Andrew Furey to skip every sitting day of the House of Assembly since stepping down as premier, while continuing to collect a full $95,000 salary.

“Furey hasn’t shown up for work once since the House resumed, but taxpayers are still paying his full salary,” said Devin Drover, CTF Atlantic Director. “Meanwhile, Hogan is letting this slide, and leaving taxpayers stuck with the bill.”

Under provincial law, MHAs are required to attend House sittings unless they have a valid excuse approved by the speaker. Furey has not offered any excuse publicly, and, while the Liberal caucus claims he was granted internal leave, the speaker’s office confirmed to media it has received no formal request or approval for his absence.

Furey has returned to surgical practice while absent from the legislature. At the same time, he continues to accrue service time that counts toward eligibility for the MHA pension plan.

“If Furey isn’t going to do any work for taxpayers, the premier should ask him resign rather than coasting toward a taxpayer-funded pension,” said Drover.

To qualify for a pension, MHAs must serve at least five years. Furey was elected in October 2020 and is several months short of the required service.

The MHA pension pays two per cent of salary for each year served, meaning Furey’s payout could be around $16,000 annually if he reaches the threshold.

“Taxpayers expect their elected officials to show up for work, not disappear to do a different job while still chasing a pension,” said Drover. “Hogan needs to step in and stop this abuse of taxpayer money immediately.”