Dominic LeBlanc and Government House Leader

Harper government: That a sharp reversal from earlier this month, when government House leader Dominic LeBlanc announced he'd sent letters to 33 people who had been given pre-election appointment renewals by the former Harper government, which the Liberals said amounted to an "abuse of process.'' LeBlanc said he wanted their voluntary resignations and gave them until Dec. 18 to respond, according to Huffington Post Canada. Leader of the Government in the House of Commons Dominic LeBlanc speaks to reporters in Ottawa on Nov. 5, 2015. "Generally speaking, a large majority of the 33 appointees answered, with a significant number of them offering to step down,'' PMO spokeswoman Andree-Lyne Halle said Wednesday in an email. "It will now be up to ministers to pursue the process with individual appointees.'' At issue are previous government appointments to boards and tribunals that were due to expire after the Oct. 19 federal election — some of them many months after the election — but were renewed in advance by the Conservatives before last summer election call. But the Prime Minister Office is refusing to provide even a numerical breakdown, citing privacy concerns for the individuals involved. Among those appointed were members of the Immigration and Refugee Board, the National Energy Board and Via Rail board of directors, as well as top executives at Canada Post and Telefilm Canada. Others were appointed at pleasure, meaning their appointments can be terminated without reason. Out of 33 appointees identified in news reports as having received letters from LeBlanc, 19 had been re-appointed under good behaviour provisions, meaning they can only be removed with cause. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.