CP reports on Harper's transition team (en francais)

For all those screaming hidden agenda, BMD and civil service cuts as some sort of result from Harper's transition team:

Harper transition team packed with non-partisans
Updated Fri. Jan. 27 2006 6:44 PM ET
Canadian Press

Derek Burney, a former Mulroney chief of staff and a former ambassador to Washington, is heading up the small transition team. The five-member team also includes Camille Guilbault, former deputy chief of staff to Mulroney, Elizabeth Roscoe, a former chief of staff to senior Mulroney ministers, Maurice Archdeacon, a veteran public servant with expertise in security issues, and Ray Speaker, a founding member of the Reform party and a former Alberta cabinet minister.

Marie-Josee Lapointe, a former Mulroney deputy press secretary, is acting as spokeswoman for the team but is not involved in the transition process itself.

Lapointe said all members of the team are volunteering their time and none have anything to gain by being involved. None are registered lobbyists and she said it's a "reasonable assumption" that none will go on to work in Harper's Prime Minister's Office or other ministerial offices.

By contrast, Martin relied heavily on a tight-knit inner circle of advisers for both political and governmental advice. His 2003 15-member transition team consisted of a number of lobbyists, including team head Michael Robinson, as well as a host of people who wound up as senior staffers in his Prime Minister's Office.

Also on board was David Herle, a communications consultant who headed Martin's leadership and subsequent election campaigns while simultaneously under contract to various government departments.

But please, by all means, continue to under-estimate Harper. It will make it all the more enjoyable.