Roundup: An upcoming vacancy that will be impossible to fill

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The report was expected after the complaint had been made, but yesterday, the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner released a report that confirmed that Liberal MP Greg Fergus did break the rules by writing a letter of support to the CRTC for a constituent, given that he is a parliamentary secretary and that position could be construed as trying to exert pressure on a quasi-judicial body. Fergus owned up to the mistake and apologised, and the Commissioner suggested that perhaps ministers and parliamentary secretaries would benefit from additional training from his office.

But that wasn’t all—the commissioner, Mario Dion, announced that he would be retiring in a few days because of persistent health issues. While Dion has not been a great Commissioner (some of his rulings have been highly dubious because he over-interpreted his mandate or his enabling statute), the real problem is going to be in finding a replacement, because the legislation about who can apply for the job is, well, nearly impossible to meet. The previous Commissioner, Mary Dawson, needed to keep extending her tenure because they couldn’t find anyone to replace her, and now Dion is leaving without a replacement in the wings. And like I said, the criteria are nigh-impossible, because there are vanishingly few retired judges in this country who want the aggravation of this job with its modest pay, and the other option is the head of an administrative tribunal (which is how Dion got the job), and again, there are only so many of those. So good luck, MPs—you’re really, really going to need it.

Ukraine Dispatch, Day 357:

Russian forces were concentrating their artillery on Bakhmut and the surrounding settlements. Meanwhile, NATO defence ministers met in Brussels to discuss getting more firepower to Ukraine as quickly as possible, now that Russia’s new offensive has begun. Germany has signed a deal to produce more ammunition for the anti-aircraft guns provided to Ukraine.

https://twitter.com/lyla_lilas/status/1625525076182310912

Good reads:

  • The prime minister was at the funeral for former Mississauga mayor, Hazel McCallion.
  • The Dominic LeBlanc-Jean-Yves Duclos road show continued in BC, where they talked with the premier about the bilateral health deal there.
  • Duclos and François-Philippe Champagne outlined a new policy around limiting research grants for projects with institutions connected to certain hostile powers.
  • Yes, the recent balloon incidents are a reminder about why it’s important to update NORAD technology (which is in the works).
  • RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki is getting support from the head of the RCMP union. (It’s a mystery why a body that avoids accountability would go to bat for her).
  • Anti-poverty group Campaign 2000 published a report finding that pandemic benefits reduced child poverty, and want to use that data to push for more.
  • Here’s a preview of what we can expect from Justice Rouleau and the Emergencies Act public inquiry, whose report will be out in days.
  • MPs on the agriculture committee have called in the big grocery chain CEOs, because showboating for the cameras will really help with inflation.
  • The government operations committee will take a broader look at consulting and not just McKinsey (though I have little confidence in their ability).
  • The foreign affairs committee want regular reports to Parliament about whether the sanctions regime is working, particularly with Russia.
  • MPs from across party lines want matching funds for more charities than just the Red Cross for Syria and Türkiye (but Red Cross is on the ground and trusted).
  • After voting for the Bloc’s motion about pre-emptive use of the Notwithstanding Clause, Conservatives are scrambling to reassure ethnocultural groups.
  • Susan Delacourt calls out the government’s compete inability to be frank about the balloons that were shot down over the weekend (and every other file).
  • Colby Cosh offers a plausible-sounding theory as to why balloons.
  • My column enumerates the collection of talking points that now dominate Question Period every day, devolving the exercise to even more depths of unseriousness.

Odds and ends:

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