Roundup: The Senate Advisory Board reports

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In keeping with the commitment to openness and transparency, the Independent Advisory Board for Senate Appointments released their report yesterday (PDF) on the interim process by which the first seven of the new independent Senate appointments were chosen. It’s an interesting read – they had a list of nearly 300 names to consider after consultations and nominations, from which they whittled it down to 25 names – five per vacancy that they were expected to fill, from which Justin Trudeau ended up selecting seven names rather than just five. The cost of the whole process was about $170,000, which seems to be pretty bare bones if you ask me. There were observations on the process included in the report, primarily that the process was pretty rushed, which meant that most of the information they had on candidates were all based on self-declaration, and that they didn’t conduct interviews with their short-list candidates in this process – they merely identified them, and one presumes that PMO was then responsible for the final vetting – something that might change as the process goes forward and the panel has more time and resources going forward as they look to fill the remaining vacancies over the next year or so, and any future vacancies as they come up. Also, the report listed the nearly 400 groups that the Board reached out to in order to get suggestions, and had demographic data on gender, linguistic profile, and Aboriginal and visible minority status. It also noted that failed candidates got a letter thanking them for participation, and the report noted that they are free to apply again under the future process. The chair of the Board has dismissed any concerns over the issue of André Pratte and his property hiccough, given that it will be resolved before he is appointed, and it’s a perfectly reasonable position to take. I will also note that this report answers most of the questions that Scott Reid has been howling about in QP over the past couple of months with regard to process and the secrecy of the system. Yes, there is an expectation of confidentiality for those who did not get appointed, as with any Governor-in-Council appointment, and from the language of the report, the PM did indeed choose the names from those on the short lists. Thus far, it looks like this new system is working as expected, and it provides the necessary suggestions for how to improve the process even further. Of course, we need to see how these new senators will perform, particularly in the capacity as independents in a system where the rules are still weighted to party caucuses (though that is slowly changing), but so far Trudeau’s reform plans are bearing fruit. We just need time to evaluate them going forward before we can declare it a success or not.

Good reads:

  • Thomas Mulcair won’t commit to a vote threshold to stay on as leader, as Peggy Nash throws some shade on his election performance.
  • Dean Del Mastro is headed back to jail after losing his appeal.
  • Maxime Bernier and Kellie Leitch are officially kicking off their leadership bids, Leitch holding a fundraiser already.
  • If past performance is any indication, it could take the CRA years to investigate the Panama Papers revelations.
  • In advance of the NDP convention, we see a policy resolution that would have it reconsider its stance on Senate abolition post-Supreme Court reference.
  • Oh noes! The justice minister is having a perfectly legal private fundraiser in Toronto and people are losing their minds because it’s this week’s moral panic.
  • CBC looks at how the government (mostly) kept its promises on EI reform so far.
  • Adam Dodek considers how Trudeau could make a dramatic change on the Supreme Court.
  • Susan Delacourt writes about Trudeau’s rejection of the Liberal Party of old as he plans to blow up the party membership.
  • Stephen Gordon looks at the way that the Liberals have a different answer to the same woes that Trump and Sanders blame on trade.

Odds and ends:

Benjamin Oliphant considers the problem with the court order demanding that VICE turn over its notes to the RCMP.

While some private refugee sponsors will see families arrive in weeks, the department says that they can’t sustain the expedited processing.

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