Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak this evening to the bill of the hon. member for Halifax West which seeks to establish a code of conduct for parliamentarians, a code of ethics for parliamentarians. I think that is very important.
I believe the member makes a valid point with this piece of legislation. There are countless examples of elected politicians who dangerously straddle the fence between what is right and wrong in terms of conduct.
For example, the Prime Minister and his suspect use of the transitional jobs fund has led to repeated stories in the press about large federal grants going to shady businessmen in the Prime Minister's riding. In an instance like this one where there is even a political staffer being quoted in the newspaper as saying the process for doling out cash in Shawinigan was outside the standard practices of the Department of Human Resources Development, one has to wonder if an appropriate watchdog body's time is not due.
There is a big difference between sending everything through the criminal route and being investigated by the RCMP versus it being investigated by an independent body that would go after the conduct or the ethics of how a person behaves.
The Minister for International Trade, who has taken some serious criticism for his election fundraising and his use of the transitional jobs fund, is another example where a committee or body overseeing ethics might be a good idea. I do not think we need to set up witch-hunt committees. I do not think this is the point of the hon. member's bill. However, in a case like this one where the minister's practices are in question an ethics committee would be a logical tool in establishing the realities of the situation.
The Minister of Human Resources Development, who has also made fine use of the TJF for propping up projects in her riding, might be in a situation where a committee would be a wise body in straightening out the issue.
Through all the endless stories of the government's questionable approach to using public funds, the government repeatedly tells us and Canadians that all is okay with this behaviour because the ethics counsellor, Mr. Wilson, acts as a watchdog for the Prime Minister and cabinet.
Mr. Wilson is not really an ethics counsellor. He is a staffer who reports to the Prime Minister. If he hears of any unfavourable conduct, his job is to straighten it out with the ministers and the Prime Minister and cover it up. A true ethics counsellor would look at it and if there were any inappropriateness his role would be to tell parliament or a committee of parliament. His role would also be to make it public.
While this position provides lovely optics for the government, the fact remains that he reports to the Prime Minister. He does not report to the House but to the individual whom he is supposed to monitor. This is absurd and completely counterproductive to the whole notion of having an ethics watchdog. What is the purpose of having somebody policing his boss? The position despite the charming title is a political one where an individual is tasked with keeping the Prime Minister and ministers out of trouble.
There is a need for an individual who reports to the House on the ethics of government. However I am not sure it is necessary to monitor every member of the House of Commons and the Senate. By the simple virtue of being elected by the citizens of Canada we are automatically asked and expected to hold a high standard of conduct.
However, if we were to look into it further, the U.S. House of Representatives model may be worth examining. Its committee on house administration is charged with overseeing and, if warranted, examining the ethical behaviour of congressmen. This might be a good approach to look at rather than the existing ethics counsellor who is really nothing more than a political fixer for the Prime Minister and his ministers.