- Member of Parliament
- Member of Parliament
- Bloc Québécois
- Trois-Rivières
- Quebec
- Voting Attendance: 63%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $100,349.98
- Government Page
- May/29/24 5:51:59 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, a number of things are missing from the bill.
The first thing I will bring up has nothing to do with the individual, but rather the profile of the interference commissioner. Do we want a judge, like we do for the ethics commissioner? Do we want a legal expert? Do we want an ethicist? One never knows. What is the profile we are looking for? These things will be determined later, by regulation. I trust in that and I do not see any issue with it, but many details are still to be determined.
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- Sep/19/23 8:22:58 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his wise suggestions.
Many times this spring, I said that, while we were debating about whether interference had occurred, the interference was continuing to happen. While we were debating the need to appoint a commissioner or a rapporteur or what have you, the interference was continuing to happen. It continued happening and Mr. Nijjar was murdered in June.
Yes, it is high time we put words into action, rather strong, rigorous action, with the specific intention of protecting the public.
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- Jun/13/23 2:44:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, nobody in their right mind would accept that kind of position without making sure that they were independent from the government. That is why the government needs to announce a real commission of inquiry and give the commissioner the latitude they need concerning their mandate. At this point, the government's failure to disclose key details is the main thing holding up the inquiry. The government has been avoiding a public inquiry for almost four months now, while foreign interference continues, so it would be easy to believe that it is still trying to hold up the process.
What is the government waiting for? When will it give the public all the facts?
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- Jun/13/23 2:42:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois is collaborating to ensure that a public inquiry into Chinese interference will finally be launched.
We have submitted names of potential commissioners in order to foster a consensus and make sure that the government will finally launch this public inquiry before we rise for the summer. That said, the ball is in the government's court. Of course, no one will blindly accept this role after the way the government set up David Johnston. That is why the government needs to announce two things: First, that it is launching an independent public inquiry and, second, that the commissioner can specify their own mandate.
When will the government finally tell us what it intends to do?
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- Jun/12/23 2:38:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, David Johnston was trapped. From day one, the mandate he received from the Prime Minister went against the will of the public and the House. Now that he has honourably stepped down, the government is signalling openness and is asking us to suggest candidates to lead an inquiry. The Bloc will collaborate, but first the government needs to clarify what kind of inquiry it is talking about.
Is it talking about a public and independent commission of inquiry, or is it talking about restricted hearings with no power or independence? In other words, does the government want the names of potential commissioners, or does it want the names of people it can trap like Mr. Johnston?
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- Apr/28/23 11:16:38 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, on February 21, ethics commissioner Mario Dion had to step down for health reasons after 43 years of public service, including the past five as Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.
Mr. Dion elevated the role and today I want to thank him for his excellent work. Throughout his tenure, Mr. Dion helped safeguard public trust, despite the many violations by government members that he had to contend with. He said, “I firmly believe that educating regulatees and the public about the importance of avoiding conflicts of interest serves to help restore Canadians' trust”.
His successor faces an immense challenge. Mr. Dion can leave with his head held high. The Office of the Commissioner is a credible and trusted institution.
I will close by saying that this strategic position urgently needs to be filled by someone everyone can agree on, because without a commissioner, there can be no investigations, and that is just unacceptable.
I want to thank Mr. Dion.
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- Apr/21/23 11:40:59 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the vacant Ethics Commissioner position is problematic. No investigations can be conducted until the position is filled.
However, the House is currently looking into the Chinese interference scandal, which could require clarifications about the role played by Liberal actors. The Prime Minister himself is embroiled in a scandal concerning his Christmas vacation with friends who make donations to the Trudeau Foundation. If the Liberals were to leave the interim Ethics Commissioner position empty much longer, questions would be raised.
Will the Liberals provide the opposition with a list of candidates on Monday?
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Madam Speaker, in his speech, my colleague referred to privacy as a fundamental right. The former privacy commissioner also raised the topic of privacy as a fundamental right before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.
I would like to know what he means when he uses these words. Does he consider privacy to be a fundamental right?
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for that excellent question. At this point, we do need some parameters we can use to define the tribunal's role and the Privacy Commissioner's role. I think the commissioner should have a little more power.
I am usually on the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, but this time around, I will be on the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology because I want to make sure this work gets done. I will make sure that we do this work rigorously, that we take a non-partisan approach to assessing this bill and that we get everyone on board with the bill.
Let me reiterate that this bill will have an impact on people's lives in the future. That is why we cannot let it become a political tool. I do not think it is one at this point, but I want to make sure it never becomes one. We will have to clearly define the roles of the tribunal and the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, as well as those of the higher courts, which may want to rule on these matters. There is some confusion about these roles that needs to be cleared up.
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