Canada prime minister faces outcry for evading ethics inquiries

Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is facing public outcry for keeping a top ethics watchdog position vacant for over six months, preventing ethics inquiries into himself and other Liberal politicians.

Over 170 days have passed since Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner Mario Dion retired from his post over “persistent health issues.” Dion, who had found Trudeau and other ministers guilty of ethics violations during his five-year tenure, announced his retirement in February. The announcement came less than two hours after finding that Liberal MP Greg Fergus had breached the Conflict of Interest Act.

Since then, one person was briefly appointed to the role of interim ethics commissioner, though she soon resigned over conflict of interest accusations. Liberal MP Martine Richard left the post after only three weeks when it emerged that she was the sister-in-law of Liberal MP Dominic LeBlanc. In addition to the conflict of interest, LeBlanc — who had babysat Trudeau as a child — was previously found guilty by Dion of breaking federal ethics laws to enrich family members.

But without an ethics commissioner, there can be no official ethics inquiries and all investigations must be put on hold, according to Canadian law. Before appointing a new commissioner, the prime minister must consult both the Liberal and Conservative Parties. Trudeau has yet to consult with either party.

"Impunity for an indefinite period of time. Not very healthy for the regime,” Dion tweeted in May. 

Other politicians have since also objected to the ethics vacancy.

“The position of Ethics Commissioner has been vacant for almost six months,” said Conservative MP Michael Barrett. “But Justin Trudeau does not make it a priority. People should be worried about that, because this Prime Minister has been censured twice by the commissioner in the past.”

Trudeau violated the Conflict of Interest Act in 2017 when he visited the private island of Aga Khan, a registered lobbyist who had received government funding, and received lavish gifts from the spiritual leader. The prime minister was found to have violated ethics laws again in 2019 when he pressured former Justice Minister and Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould to offer a deferred prosecution agreement to construction firm SNC-Lavalin.

As of this report, the position for Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner remains open. While it is not considered to be excessively prohibitive in terms of qualifications, the job description notes that “Preference may be given to applicants who are members of one or more of the following groups: women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, and members of a visible minority group.”

Journalist Michelle Rempel points out that Liberal MPs earlier this year cut the position’s salary by 33%, which she says diminishes the role’s appeal.

The ethics vacancy is even more stark considering Trudeau’s hiring sprees — nearly 100,000 federal employees have been hired since Trudeau took office in 2015 — and generous annual pay raises.

In April, Parliament members took their fourth pay raise since the COVID-19 pandemic began, with Trudeau collecting an extra $10,000 this year alone. MPs now receive $15,000 more than they did before the pandemic.