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ARCHIVED - Guidelines for Ministers' Offices (2005-09) - Archived
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Introduction
The Excluded Groups and Administrative Policies of the Treasury Board Secretariat publishes and co-ordinates the preparation of this document based entirely on input provided by policy centres in the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), the Department of National Defence (DND), The Department of Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) and the Privy Council Office (PCO). By its very nature, the document cannot be all inclusive and as such, source documents are cited where appropriate. Responsibility for interpreting the guidelines as they relate to various policies rests with the TBS policy centres or the departments identified above.
The Treasury Board provides Ministers and Ministers of State with a budget for exempt staff (personnel exempt from the normal appointing procedures under section 39 of the Public Service Employment Act), a budget for operating their offices, and a budget for departmental staff.
Ministers and Ministers of State must be able to differentiate between expenses for activities related to the conduct of the portfolio and other official government business, and expenses incurred as a member of Parliament and a member of a political party.
This document consolidates the various financial, personnel and administrative rules and regulations that govern expenses incurred by Ministers, Ministers of State and their exempt staff when they perform duties directly related to their responsibilities which are therefore justifiably chargeable against the appropriation of a particular ministry. Unless specifically exempted, Ministers and Ministers of State are subject to Treasury Board policies and regulations (refer to Part 4.1 of these Guidelines). The first source of help, information or guidance on these matters is the Deputy Minister.
The Treasury Board may authorize exceptions to the Guidelines in special circumstances. All such requests must first be discussed between the Minister and the President of the Treasury Board.
This document and Treasury Board policies are available electronically on the TBS web-site at: http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pubs_pol/hrpubs/mg-ldm/gfmo-eng.asp and http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/common/policies-politiques-eng.asp respectively.
Part 1 Conflict of Interest
1.1 Conflict of Interest
The highest standards of probity and integrity are expected of Ministers' and Ministers' of State staff. All persons on the political staff of a Minister or a Minister of State, whether they be exempt, or constituency or House of Commons, full-time or part-time, on salary or on contract, are subject to the Conflict of Interest and Post-employment Code for Public Office Holders.
The Ethics Commissioner administers the Code and applies compliance measures. The Office of the Ethics Commissioner will communicate with each individual as soon as notification of his or her appointment has been received from the office of a Minister or a Minister of State.
The requirements of the code generally cover the following:
- general principles and specific prohibitions;
- mandatory reporting requirements, involving both confidential and publicly available information; and
- post employment conditions.
There are limitations on the ability of Ministers and Ministers of State to act on behalf of their constituents where quasi-judicial tribunals and Crown corporations are concerned. In this respect, guidance can be obtained from the Office of the Ethics Commissioner as to the nature and extent of services Ministers and Ministers of State, as Members of Parliament, and their staff can offer to constituents in their dealings with these institutions.
In addition, the Ethics Commissioner is available to the Prime Minister to investigate allegations against Ministers, Ministers of State and senior officials involving conflict of interest or lobbying, and will inquire into complaints, or other matters related to Ministers or Ministers of State referred to his Office by any Member of Parliament.
The Office of the Ethics Commissioner can be reached for advice and guidance at (613) 995-0721 or by E-mail at oec-bce@parl.gc.ca. The Conflict of Interest Code for Public Office Holders can be found at the Office of the Ethics Commissioner web-site at http://www.parl.gc.ca/oec/.
1.1.1 Ministers' Exempt staff
The Minister or the Minister of State may designate exempt staff members as being subject to Part III - Post-Employment Measures of the Conflict of Interest Code for Public Office Holders, http://www.parl.gc.ca/oec/. Those who are so designated are bound by it. Chief of Staff for both the Ministers and Ministers of State, other senior positions, and any other position, working with sensitive policy files must be subject to the post-employment compliance measures. The Minister or the Minister of State may also designate other exempt staff members, in consideration of their specific responsibilities (see Appendix F).
The Minister or the Minister of State, or their designate, is responsible for communicating in a timely and expeditious manner to the Office of the Ethics Commissioner, the names and titles (designations) of all newly hired exempt staff members or exempt staff transfers in or out, as well as an indication if Part III of the Code (Post-Employment) applies to them. Persons to whom the Code applies must come into compliance with its requirements within 120 days.
1.1.2 Ministerial Appointees
Persons appointed by the authority of a Minister (such as members of some advisory panels) will be subject to Part 1 - the Principles of the Code if appointed on a part-time basis and the Minister concerned will be responsible to ensure adherence to the Principles of the Code. Persons appointed by a Minister on a full time basis who have been designated as a 'Public Office Holder' will be subject to the full requirements of the Code.
1.1.3 Post-employment Compliance Measures
Exempt staff members who are designated by their Minister or Minister of State as being subject to Part III - Post-Employment Compliance Measures of the Conflict of Interest and Post-Employment Code for Public Office Holders are required to observe a one-year limitation period after leaving public office. During this time, they are prevented from appointment to a board of directors or accepting employment with any organisation outside the Federal government with which they have had direct and significant official dealings during the period of one-year immediately prior to the termination of their tenure as exempt staff members. Furthermore, under the Code, such staff members cannot make representations for or on behalf of any other person or entity, to any department with which they had direct and significant official dealings during the period of one year immediately prior to the termination of their service in public office. Information about certain prohibited activities after leaving office is also provided, in Part III of the Code.
1.1.4 Departmental Employees
Departmental staff assigned to the office of a Minister or a Minister of State must comply with the requirements of the Values and Ethics Code for the Public Service http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/pubs_pol/hrpubs/TB_851/vec-cve-eng.asp. On assignment to such an office, the employee must review his or her circumstances in light of the newly assigned duties and, if necessary, complete a confidential report and submit it to the Deputy Minister or his or her representative.
