Suchergebnisse

Every province and territory in Canada has an independent ethics commissioner, along with ethics rules, and so too does the House of Commons, the Senate, and cabinet. The ethics regime for the House of Commons and the cabinet, however, appears to be the least successful of these ethics regimes in preventing breach of the rules. This article identifies the major weaknesses of the federal ethics regime. While in most other jurisdictions the ethics commissioner meets annually with all legislators to explain the rules, the extensive mandate of the federal ethics commissioner makes fulfilling the primary function – prevention through education – challenging. Face-to-face meetings between the ethics commissioner and members of the House of Commons and cabinet rarely occur. The author reviews inquiries made by the two House of Commons commissioners since 2004, and argues that many of the inquiries would have been unnecessary if face-to-face meetings had been held.

AbstractThe rash of conflict of interest incidents involving cabinet ministers in Canada in 1986, 1987 and early 1988 can in part be explained by the fact that no clear connection exists in most of the conflict of interest rules between the substance of the rules and basic constitutional principles. Unless ministers understand the reasons for the increasingly complex rules, a high degree of compliance with them is unrealistic. The article explores the connection between the rule of law, social equality, the principle of ministerial impartiality and conflict of interest legislation and guidelines. The conflict of interest rules have usually been drafted hastily in reaction to scandals, with little thought given to their constitutional basis. Thirty-five recent conflict of interest incidents are classified and analyzed. Many might have been avoided if the constitutional reasons for the rules had been better understood. Nevertheless, with regard to the overlap between conflicts of interest and political patronage, the Canadian political system has not developed a clear set of expectations for ministerial behaviour in all circumstances.

Based on cases reported in the media during 1979-89. Explores the connection between the rule of law, social equality, the principle of ministerial impartiality, and conflict of interest legislation and guidelines.

"For many, honest politics is an oxymoron. Yet there have been enormous changes in Canadian public life in the past two decades to identify and address expectations that politicians and officials will act honestly and in the public interest. Using high-profile political scandals as case studies, this book explores the standards of accountability to which Canadian politicians are now being held. Among the case studies addressed are the gas plant scandal in Ontario, the "Railgate" scandal in B.C., the Robocalls affair, the "sponsorship scandal," Stephen Harper's attack on the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and the saga of Rob Ford. This book critically analyzes changes introduced and implemented over the last twenty years intended to deal with ethical issues in politics, including the boom of independent ethics commissioners, the regulation of lobbyists in Canada, and federal efforts to protect whistle-blowers. Contributors to the book include experts in all these areas, drawn from across the country."--