Ethics Commissioner’s Office Can’t Initiate Investigations Due to Leadership Absence, Committee Hears

Office has been without a commissioner since mid-April

View of Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Sept. 1, 2020. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

The federal Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner cannot currently initiate investigations or issue reports on possible ethics breaches by public servants because it has no acting commissioner, a House of Commons committee heard on May 12.

Representatives from the office told the Commons Standing Committee on Ethics that a future commissioner could retroactively launch an investigation into a possible ethics-law violation up to five years after the office obtains information on the matter, but acknowledged that it would be ideal to have a new commissioner named “sooner rather than later.”

“The authority to initiate an investigation rests with the commissioner,” said Melanie Rushworth, the office’s communications director.

She said the office also can’t issue reports setting out the facts of potential ethics breaches or conduct analysis and make conclusions related to requests for ethics investigations in the absence of a commissioner because the power to do so is the commissioner’s alone.

“Are you able to refer investigations or any findings of the office to the speaker of the House of Commons at this time?” asked Conservative MP Michael Barrett.

“I cannot imagine that we'd be able to do that without the commissioner,” Rushworth said.

Former Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion stepped down from the post in February due to health concerns after holding the position for five years. His retirement came within months of finding both International Trade Minister Mary Ng and Liberal MP Greg Fergus guilty of violating the Conflict of Interest Act

In his place, cabinet named Martine Richard to serve as interim ethics watchdog for six months after Dion’s retirement until the appointment of a permanent commissioner.

The appointment received heavy criticism from Opposition parties as Richard is the sister-in-law of Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc. She had also worked in the ethics commissioner’s office for about 10 years prior to the appointment.

Cabinet said Richard’s relation to the minister played no role in the appointment and LeBlanc said he recused himself from the matter prior to cabinet’s vote on it in late March.

However, Richard stepped down from the interim post on April 19, just one day after the Commons ethics committee agreed to conduct a study into her appointment.

The office has been without a commissioner since Richard stepped down.

‘Still Paying Attention’

Rushworth told the ethics committee on May 12 that, despite the absence of a commissioner, the office is “still paying attention” to ensure public servants abide by federal ethics rules although it cannot launch an investigation until a commissioner is appointed.

“Take notes, keep receipts,” Barrett said after asking questions on the matter.

Bloc Québécois MP René Villemure asked Sandy Tremblay, the office’s director of corporate management, how long the office can realistically function without an acting commissioner.

“In the absence of a commissioner, the files are piling up,” Villemure said in French. “When that individual is appointed, they’re going to arrive in their office and they’re going to have this huge pile on the top of their desk. What are they going to do with that? How will they catch up?”

“Well, obviously we'd like someone to be appointed in short order, but it’s not up to us,” Tremblay said.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.