98,000 new public servants but this ain’t one of them

Trudeau’s unwillingness to name an ethics czar speaks volumes about the government’s priorities.

The National Post recently reported on figures released by the Treasury Board of Canada that outlined exactly how much, in human terms, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government had expanded the government. Since he took office in 2015, over 98,000 people have been added to the ranks of the federal bureaucracy, an overall historic 40% increase.

But among all these new hires, there is one glaring omission: the federal ethics commissioner.

Formally known as the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, the role administers the Conflict of Interest Act. In simple terms, this means enforcing the rules that keep public officeholders from abusing their positions.

Trudeau has now left this role vacant for nearly six months since the retirement of the last person to occupy the office, Mario Dion, who left the post earlier in the year. While Dion cited health concerns, he also had the dubious honour of being kept very busy in his role by the Trudeau government. Dion presided over several high-profile rulings against prominent sitting members of the Liberal Party, most notably finding Trudeau himself in violation of federal ethics law for his role in the SNC-Lavalin scandal. Dion found so many Liberal MPs breaking the rules during his tenure that he lamented that mandatory training be required so that they would perhaps, just maybe, find themselves breaking the rules less frequently.

As the Liberals sag in the polls and Liberal pundits become increasingly worried about Canadians losing trust in the Liberal party’s ability to govern ethically, it seems odd that the Liberals wouldn’t move to fill this role. So what gives?

Cynics quickly point out that the biggest problem of leaving this position unfilled could also be a boon for the scandal-prone Liberals. Ethics investigations can only be completed once someone has been hired into it. After months had passed since his retirement, even Dion lamented this fact on his X/Twitter feed. 

But there could be many other reasons why the Liberals are leaving the spot vacant, too - and none of them are good. 

For starters, the role hasn’t been entirely vacant since February. The Liberals appointed Martine Richard in March 2023 to serve in an interim capacity in the position for six months. However, Richard ended up resigning from the role after only a few weeks on the job when the fact emerged that she was prominent Liberal cabinet Minister Dominic Leblanc’s sister-in-law. Adding to the brazenness of Richard’s appointment was the fact that Leblanc had previously found himself in hot water for using his position as minister to enrich a member of his sister’s family. Perhaps the Liberals thought they could keep Richard in the role for an extended period, and thus delay having to go through the required-by-law process of consulting all other political parties in the House of Commons in hiring someone permanently into the role.

And while there’s certainly no shortage of people who could do the role - the qualifications needed for the job are written into the legislation that created it - finding someone who wants to might be a different matter. Earlier this year, the Liberals made the position less lucrative, cutting its salary by 33%. While the pay is undoubtedly still incredibly healthy, it could be less than what many people with the qualifications required may command in other fields. Perhaps a lack of candidates is exactly what the Liberals are aiming for, either to delay hiring the position (and starting ethics investigations) or to justify a false need to change the qualifications.

On yet another note, Conservative Member of Parliament Michael Barrett recently raised a point of privilege in the House of Commons, arguing that “without an Ethics Commissioner in place, there is no one on duty to ensure that members fulfill the requirements of the House, as described by the House in law and in its rules.” Going back to the first point, given the number of ethics scandals the Liberals have found themselves embroiled in, perhaps they (wrongly) view this lack of oversight as a strength.

But if that’s the case, the Liberals are making a big political mistake. The pandemic eroded the trust of millions of Canadians in various government institutions. Avoiding hiring an ethics commissioner - a role designed to ensure that people with power play by the rules - will further exacerbate that problem.

In any event, there’s no good reason for the Liberals to avoid finding someone for the role. They need to get on with it.

And if you think the right person for the job might be you, the job posting can be found here.

Godspeed.