WATCHDOG UNDER FIRE, STILL — The timing almost couldn’t have been worse for YVES GIROUX. Parliament’s independent spending watchdog posted a major error notice, quietly … on April 17 — a day after the federal budget came out. The chattering class only thundered to life about it this week — right in the middle of silly season, the lead-up to the summer break that inevitably escalates into partisan games, where everyone’s riled up and ready to sound off with fierce takes. The notice revealed that the PBO’s key study about the hottest policy debate in Ottawa — carbon pricing, aka the tax that PIERRE POILIEVRE wants to ax — accidentally factored in the industrial carbon price, and the projection won’t be fixed until fall. — Critics activated: Former Liberal MP ADAM VAUGHAN, now at Navigator, who publicly fought Giroux over housing data, tells Playbook he’s “shocked that he hasn't offered his resignation” or a proper apology. “He is unnecessarily politicizing his office, which is going to have consequences. I guarantee the next government's going to come in and dismiss him entirely.” Environment Minister STEVEN GUILBEAULT thinks it will vindicate his policy against the frequent Conservative attacks citing the report as evidence. He did a victory lap in QP on Thursday, where he thanked the PBO — twice. Playbook reached out for an interview, but Giroux’s office said he was unavailable, off in Montreal for a conference. — The defensive line: Giroux has said the fix will not change the overall conclusion of the report: “If you impose carbon pricing on an economy as diverse but also as dependent on fossil fuels as Canada, it's bound to happen that there will be negative economic consequences,” he said in an interview on CBC’s “Power & Politics.” — The firing line: A panel of pundits on the same show across the political spectrum — TIM POWERS, JORDAN LEICHNITZ, AMANDA ALVARO — all called on Giroux to resign, not so much for the mistake as how it was handled: seemingly swept under the rug, then shrug. The interview and panel left a mark on the Ottawa fishbowl, even if the eventual revisions won’t change any hearts and minds on such a scorcher topic for the public. — Likely fallout: Former NDP MP MATTHEW DUBÉ of Proof Strategies said the incident has “done a big disservice, unfortunately, to the office,” shaking confidence in an institution that MPs rely on for independent information. “I suspect we won't see a renewal of this particular parliamentary budget officer, unless we see a change of government,” he said. — Timestamp: The PBO is appointed on a seven-year term, which expires in 2025. Dubé said he also expects lots of back-channel conversations about how to prevent this kind of upset from happening again, but that’ll all happen out of view. — Rings a bell: It’s not the first time the office has come under fire. Toward the end of the STEPHEN HARPER era, the government had a frosty relationship with former PBO KEVIN PAGE, who worried his office would be wound down. Playbook reached out to Page, who declined an interview, saying that as a former PBO he does not want to get into the middle of important debates between the government and the office. He said those are “healthy and inevitable.” | 
