June 22, 2015—Following the House of Commons’ concurrence in the House of Commons Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs’ report on its review of the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner Mary Dawson has issued the following statement:
“The Committee proposed, and the House has accepted, a number of amendments that I believe will strengthen the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons. I am pleased that the amendments reflect 10 of the recommendations that I made in my written submission to the Committee. “In particular, I am pleased that the disclosure threshold for gifts will be lowered significantly, and that there will be more stringent public reporting requirements for sponsored travel. I also welcome the establishment of some deadlines for the completion of the initial compliance process and the annual review process. As well, there are amendments relating to public comments about inquiries that reflect my recommendations.
“The Committee indicated in its report that it did not have enough time to conduct a comprehensive review of the Members’ Code, and recommended that a comprehensive review be recommenced by the future Committee at its earliest opportunity in the next Parliament. The Committee also suggested that the briefing materials and documentation provided to date be employed along with any materials provided in the next Parliament. I look forward to contributing to that review as the Committee sees fit.”
The amendments to the Members’ Code that have been accepted by the House of Commons will come into effect on October 20, 2015. In its report, the Committee also recommended that the House concur in a new inquiry request form, which the Commissioner had previously submitted to it for approval.
