Chapter 4The House of Commons and Its Members

Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner

The Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner is an Officer of Parliament responsible for administering the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons and the Conflict of Interest Act for public office holders. The Commissioner has the rank of deputy head of a government department and is responsible for the control and management of the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, which is an entity of Parliament.⁴⁰⁸ The Commissioner is independent of the government, and the position’s appointment process and mandate are set out in the Parliament of Canada Act.

Historical Perspective

When the first guidelines for public office holders were introduced in 1973, a senior public servant, the Assistant Deputy Registrar of Canada, reporting directly to the Prime Minister, was responsible for administering them. In 1994, Prime Minister Chrétien appointed an ethics counsellor to administer the Code of Conduct for Public Office Holders. In 2004, the Parliament of Canada Act was amended to create the first independent position of Ethics Commissioner.⁴⁰⁹ This official was appointed to perform the duties and functions assigned by the House of Commons regarding the conduct of its Members and to administer any ethics principles, rules or obligations established by the Prime Minister for public office holders. In 2006, the title of the position was changed to Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner with the adoption of the Federal Accountability Act.⁴¹⁰ The first Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner was appointed in July 2007.⁴¹¹

Appointment Process

The Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner is appointed by Governor in Council after consultations with the leaders of all recognized parties in the House of Commons and the adoption of a resolution by the House.⁴¹² Pursuant to the Standing Orders, when the government intends to appoint a Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, the appointee’s biographical notes are tabled in the House by a Minister or Parliamentary Secretary, and referred to the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.⁴¹³ The Committee has the option of considering the appointment and inviting the proposed appointee to appear. If it chooses to do so, the Committee has 30 calendar days following the tabling of the biographical notes to consider the proposed appointment and report back to the House.⁴¹⁴ Before this 30-day period expires, a notice of motion to ratify the appointment is placed on the Notice Paper for consideration under the rubric “Motions” during Routine Proceedings, whether or not the Committee has reported back to the House.⁴¹⁵ The motion, when moved, is to be decided without debate or amendment.⁴¹⁶

The Parliament of Canada Act establishes the qualifications for the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner. In order to be eligible for appointment to this office, the candidate must be a former superior court judge or a former provincial court judge; a former member of a federal or provincial board, commission or tribunal with demonstrated expertise in at least one of the following matters: conflict of interest, financial arrangement, professional regulation and discipline, or ethics; or a former Senate Ethics Officer or former Ethics Commissioner.⁴¹⁷

The Commissioner’s appointment is for seven years, unless he or she is removed for cause by the Governor in Council on address of the House of Commons.⁴¹⁸ The appointment may be renewed for one or more terms of up to seven years each.⁴¹⁹

Responsibilities

The mandate of the Commissioner is twofold: to administer the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons⁴²⁰ and to administer the Conflict of Interest Act for public office holders.⁴²¹

The Commissioner provides confidential advice to public office holders with respect to their obligations under the Conflict of Interest Act.⁴²² The Commissioner also provides confidential opinions to Members of the House of Commons about their obligations under the Code.⁴²³ In addition, the Commissioner provides confidential advice to the Prime Minister about the application of the Conflict of Interest Act to individual public office holders and confidential policy advice to the Prime Minister on conflict of interest and ethics issues in general.⁴²⁴

The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs meets with the Commissioner to discuss issues of concern or areas in the Code which need clarification.⁴²⁵ The Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics may also meet with the Commissioner to discuss conflict of interest matters relating to public office holders or the management and operation of his or her Office.⁴²⁶

The Commissioner prepares a summary of required confidential disclosure statements for both Members of the House of Commons and public office holders and maintains a public registry of these summaries.⁴²⁷ The Commissioner also prepares procedural and interpretative guidelines and forms relating to the Code for submission to the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.⁴²⁸

In addition, the Commissioner submits two annual reports to Parliament: one on the administration of the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons,⁴²⁹ and one on the administration of the Conflict of Interest Act,⁴³⁰ no later than June 30 each year. The Commissioner also prepares a list of all sponsored travel by Members of the House of Commons by March 31 each year; the list is tabled in the House.⁴³¹

The Commissioner conducts inquiries into whether a Member has contravened the Code at the request of another Member, by order of the House, or on his or her own initiative.⁴³² At the request of a Senator or a Member, or on his or her own initiative, the Commissioner may also conduct an examination into whether a current or former public office holder has breached the Conflict of Interest Act.⁴³³ If the Commissioner finds that a public office holder has violated certain sections of the Act, he or she may impose on the office holder an administrative monetary penalty not exceeding $500.⁴³⁴

Finally, the Commissioner is mandated to organize educational activities for Members and the general public regarding the Code and the role of the Commissioner.⁴³⁵

408.: Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 84(1). The Commissioner’s salary is set by the Governor in Council (s 83(1)). The appointment process and the mandate of this office are set out in the Parliament of Canada Act, ss 81 and 85.
409.: An Act to amend the Parliament of Canada Act (Ethics Commissioner and Senate Ethics Officer) and other Acts in consequence, SC 2004, c 7, s 4. Bernard Shapiro, Principal and Vice-Chancellor Emeritus of McGill University, was appointed Ethics Commissioner on May 17, 2004, by Order in Council after his nomination was ratified by the House of Commons (Journals, April 21, 2004, p. 285; April 27, 2004, p. 319; April 29, 2004, p. 348). In 2005, a motion of non-confidence in the Ethics Commissioner was moved and negatived in the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics (Minutes of Proceedings, June 28, 2005, Meeting No. 34). Mr. Shapiro resigned on March 30, 2007.
410.: Federal Accountability Act, supra note 387, ss 27 and 28.
411.: Mary Dawson was appointed Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner on July 9, 2007, after her nomination was ratified by the House of Commons (Journals, June 12, 2007, p. 1507; June 14, 2007, p. 1532; June 18, 2007, pp. 1549–53).
412.: Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 81(1).
413.: Standing Order 111.1(1). See, for example, Journals, June 12, 2007, p. 1507.
414.: Standing Order 111.1(1). In 2007, the Committee invited the appointee to appear before it, make a statement and answer questions (Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, Minutes of Proceedings, June 14, 2007, Meeting No. 54). See also Journals, June 14, 2007, p. 1532.
415.: Standing Order 111.1(2). See, for example, Order Paper and Notice Paper, June 13, 2007, p. III. Notice was given by the Government House Leader.
416.: Standing Order 111.1(2). See, for example, Journals, June 18, 2007, pp. 1549–53.
417.: Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 81(2).
418.: Ibid., s 82(1). In the event of the absence or incapacity of the Commissioner, or if the office is vacant, the Governor in Council may appoint an interim Commissioner for a term not exceeding six months (s 82(2)).
419.: Ibid., s 81(3). On July 9, 2014, the term of Commissioner Mary Dawson was renewed following the same process as that used for her initial appointment to the position (Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, Minutes of Proceedings, June 10, 2014, Meeting No. 28). See also Journals, June 11, 2014, p. 1245.
420.: Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 86(1). The duties and functions of the Commissioner as they relate to the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Appendix I to the Standing Orders, are carried out under the general direction of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs (s 86(3)). See also Standing Order 108(3)(a)(vii) and (viii).
421.: Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 87.
422.: Supra note 285, s 43(b). The Act requires the Commissioner to review annually with each public office holder his or her obligations under the Act and any information contained in the confidential disclosure reports (s 28).
423.: Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Appendix I to the Standing Orders, s 26(1).
424.: Conflict of Interest Act, supra note 285, s 43(a); Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 85(b).
425.: Standing Order 108(3)(a)(vii) and (viii). See, for example, Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, Evidence, October 14, 2004, Meeting No. 2.
426.: Standing Order 108(3)(h)(iii) and (v).
427.: Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Appendix I to the Standing Orders, s 23; Conflict of Interest Act, supra note 285, s 51(1).
428.: Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Appendix I to the Standing Orders, s 30(1).
429.: Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 90(1)(a). See, for example, Journals, June 20, 2008, p. 1031; June 9, 2015, p. 2675.
430.: Parliament of Canada Act, supra note 9, s 90(1)(b). See, for example, Journals, June 13, 2008, pp. 985–6; June 9, 2015, p. 2675.
431.: Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Appendix I to the Standing Orders, s 15(3). See, for example, Journals, January 31, 2008, p. 365; March 26, 2015, p. 2289.
432.: Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Appendix I to the Standing Orders, ss 27(1), (3) and (4). For further information, see the section in this chapter entitled “Inquiries”.
433.: Conflict of Interest Act, supra note 285, ss 44(1) and 45(1). The report is presented to the Prime Minister; a copy is given to the public office holder or former public office holder who is the subject of the report; and the report is also made public (ss 44(7) and 44(8) and 45(3) and 45(4)).
434.: Ibid., s 52.
435.: Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Appendix I to the Standing Orders, s 32.

For questions about parliamentary procedure, contact the Table Research Branch

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