The territorial government will not tell Yukoners what the conflicts commissioner was asked to investigate in the Jim Kenyon/veterinary school controversy.

On Tuesday, Premier Dennis Fentie and Economic Development Minister Kenyon announced they would deal with the recent controversy about the government's decision to buy a spot at a veterinary school for a Yukoner by asking the conflicts commissioner to look into it.

Cabinet spokesman Albert Petersen was asked today to provide the question or questions asked of conflicts commissioner David Jones.

'The conflict of interest commissioner, the matter is now in the commissioner's hands and his full report will be released,' Petersen told the Star.

He could not give any further information nor release the questions.

The opposition parties were not happy with the government's decision to not inform Yukoners as to what Jones is going to be actually investigating.

'Mr. Fentie does not seem to understand what his role is as the premier of this territory and what accountability is,' Opposition Leader Todd Hardy said in an interview this morning.

'It's incumbent on this premier ... to be a premier to recognize that he is elected to the people of this territory and accountable to the people of this territory, not his own little caucus and group of friends.'

Liberal Leader Pat Duncan is also unhappy with the announcement.

'It seems that they're trying to take a step forward and they're backsliding.'

Duncan said the government is back to showing 'the same old We know best' attitude.'

Hardy said that if the government is refusing to release what the questions are, it's trying to keep legitimate questions from being addressed.

'That instills absolutely zero confidence in the whole process.'

Duncan said that given the fact there are so many specific questions that need to be answered, one would think the premier would welcome input.

According to Duncan, if the government is truly interested in getting to the bottom of the situation, then the questions would be made public.

Duncan said yesterday she will come up with a list of questions she would like to see answered in the investigation.

She was just finishing up her letter this morning, and planned to deliver it later today.

'We'll see what answer we get to that,' said the former Liberal premier.

While Hardy doesn't expect the government will listen to the opposition's input on what the questions should be, he did expect to hear what the questions are.

'I did not (fore)see the fact that they would allow the questions to be made public.'

When Kenyon apologized to the civil service on Tuesday for comments he made last week, Hardy said he felt there were too many questions which needed to be answered that do not fall under the conflicts commissioner's purview.

He pushed Fentie to call a public inquiry, and still hopes the premier will do that.

The controversy swirls around the fact the government agreed to spend $25,000 a year to purchase a space at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatchewan for a Yukon student who's also a seasonal employee at the veterinary clinic Kenyon owns.

Documents obtained by the Star via the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act showed that Kenyon pushed Education Minister John Edzerza to put up the money for the seat.

Kenyon maintained there was an agreement with Edzerza that the money would be made available if an eligible student came along.

Edzerza initially denied Kenyon's request; however, cabinet eventually voted to pay for the seat.

The documents also showed there was an eligible student in 2003 and the government refused to buy the spot for that student.

Since all seats at English-language veterinary schools in Canada are handed out based on where the student came from, the only way to ensure they would get in without going into a general pool would be for the Yukon government to buy a spot at the Saskatchewan school.

Kenyon said the 2003 student was 'screwed royally' by the department, something he later apologized for Tuesday, along with all other comments he made about the department.