Information & Ethics Committee on June 4th, 2024

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Mr. Chair, there is a well-established practice done by the Ethics Commissioner that every single member around this table has to go through. The standards are higher for parliamentary secretaries and ministers. I have followed that process to the letter. All of those documents were provided to the commissioner of ethics.

Mr. Chair, the Ethics Commissioner sent me and Mr. Barrett a letter indicating that there was no need. He took the decision that there was no need to look into my business affairs and no need to evaluate them. I have followed the rule to the letter.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Thank you, Mr. Boissonnault and Mr. Barrett.

Ms. Damoff, you have six minutes. Go ahead, please.

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

Before I start, I have a point of order.

Mr. Cooper has just called me disgusting. I would ask that he please remove that. It's not appropriate.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

I'm sorry. I was dealing with other issues.

[Larry Brock, Conservative, Brantford—Brant, ON]

I have a point of order.

[Damien Kurek, Conservative, Battle River—Crowfoot, AB]

I have a point of order as well.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

I didn't hear it, Ms. Damoff. I'm sorry.

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

He's done it twice, Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

I didn't hear it. I apologize.

[Larry Brock, Conservative, Brantford—Brant, ON]

On a point of order, Mr. Chair, those who live in glass houses should be very careful about throwing stones.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

That's not a point of order, Mr. Brock.

[Larry Brock, Conservative, Brantford—Brant, ON]

It is, because Ms. Damoff used the very same language towards my colleague Mr. Cooper. I heard it very clearly on more than one occasion, Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

The chair did not hear it, because I was obviously busy dealing with some other issues.

Ms. Damoff, I will ask that you continue for six minutes.

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

I have a point of order, Chair, before Ms. Damoff starts so that I don't interrupt her time.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Go ahead on your point of order, Mr. Barrett.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

It's a practice at other committees, and this one in the past, that when a request for documents is made, there's confirmation by the clerk to the witness that the information's been requested.

Is the committee to understand that the witness will provide the documents that were requested to the committee or not?

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Mr. Boissonnault, will you provide those documents that have been requested by Mr. Barrett?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Mr. Chair, I was very clear in my answer. Any documents related to my affairs as a private citizen before becoming a public office holder have been provided to the Ethics Commissioner and his team. They have looked at those documents. The Ethics Commissioner has concluded that there is no need to evaluate my business affairs.

Full stop.

[The Chair, Conservative, John Brassard]

Okay.

If the committee feels compelled to request those documents, you can do so when you have the floor, Mr. Barrett.

Go ahead, please, Ms. Damoff.

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

On May 7, CSIS reported that disinformation is the biggest threat to Canadians, and more than 84% of Canadians are somewhat concerned with this issue. I'm really disheartened that the Conservatives would prefer to go on a witch hunt against a minister of the Crown versus continuing and finishing our study on misinformation and disinformation.

Mr. Boissonnault, when you become a minister, is the procedure involved with documentation the same as it is for a member of Parliament? I would note that none of the opposition members have ever had to complete the documentation. As a parliamentary secretary, I have. I know that it's quite extensive.

Could you maybe discuss that?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Absolutely, Ms. Damoff.

When you become a public office holder, as you have experienced, there's a much different approach from just sending in your annual report as a member of Parliament. There are financial documents. Your partner, your spouse, your significant other, your common-law partner—they get scoped into the process. It is an intense process so that you comply by the 120-day mark.

In my case, we had to figure out what to do with one holding company, one active business. I got advice from the commissioner of ethics that I needed to have a third party. I went all through that.

I think the other thing that's really important, Ms. Damoff, is that it's my financials. It's investments. It's everything related to my personal life. It's the personal finances of my life and my partner's life that the commissioner gets to see. I don't think any of us would want to be poking our noses in other people's personal financial business. We have a different system. We have one of the strictest ethics regimes in the world.

The other thing I'll say, before you get to your next question, is that it's not just a one-time thing. It's a continual process. I have to constantly decide and make sure that we're complying with the act. I recuse myself from nominations and appointments all the time so that I stay on the right side of the act.

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

You have to file the reports annually. In addition, as part of the conditions when you file those reports, you can't have any knowledge of what's going on. I recall that I couldn't even hold shares. I had to move any stocks I owned into a blind trust or—

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Absolutely.

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

—have mutual funds, and this needs to be filed annually.

To imply that you are somehow still involved would indicate that you've contravened the act, yet the commissioner has gone through your documents and has vetted them and said no, that you didn't. Is that not correct?