Search for new federal ethics commissioner crosses six month milestone

Former ethics watchdog Mario Dion is helping with the search for his replacement, but says that it is difficult as there are few people qualified for and want the job.

The federal government has remained without a conflict of interest and ethics watchdog for more than six months – a vacancy that the most recent commissioner says is putting investigations on hold and could allow violations to go unnoticed.

Mario Dion retired in February after serving as the last permanent conflict of interest and ethics commissioner.

A longtime staffer in that office, Martine Richard, took on an interim role in April. But she resigned within weeks amid controversy around the fact she is the sister-in-law of Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc.

Investigations that would normally be conducted by a commissioner are on pause until a permanent replacement is found.

Dion said the role serves as a good safeguard to detect corruption, and Canadians should care that the instruments it has are being used.

“It’s a little bit like judicial appointments. If you don’t appoint judges, it will be hard to deliver justice,” Dion said in an interview.

“So it means that things can go essentially unpunished and unnoticed for a period of time until a new person has been appointed.”

This is the longest period of time Canada has gone without a commissioner since the current version of the watchdog role was created in 2007, following the passage of the Conflict of Interest Act.