‘The Watchman’ moves on
After 33 years of working at the legislature, Charles MacKay will be leaving his post this spring
Charles MacKay has spent almost his entire working life on the grounds of P.E.I.’s legislature.
MacKay, the clerk of the legislative assembly, will be leaving his post at the end of March. In all, he has served close to 33 years working within the clerk’s office, including 18 in his current position.
In his time, he has witnessed the rise of the internet age, has become uncomfortably acquainted with the prospect of politicallymotivated violence and has seen five premiers come and go.
With a possible election looming perhaps as early as spring of next year, MacKay says this is the time to give someone else a start at his job.
“I just felt, personally, given
what I’ve contributed to this place and where I am personally, the time was right for me to move on,” MacKay said.
“Everybody has a little bit of a best before date and you don’t want to overstay your time either.”
The clerk of a legislature is rarely a figure who is in the public eye. But, the role involves maintaining Hansard services, the
public’s eye into the daily workings of the legislature. The office of the clerk also administers legislative security services, publishes bills passed in the house in a legislative journal and provides administrative support to MLAs and the Speaker of the house. The clerk also acts as a sort of walking rulebook for parliamentary procedure, advising the Speaker.
For MacKay, who has had a lifelong interest in politics, the clerk’s office provides a crucial safeguard for a key institution of democracy.
“A lot of people just see the legislature as an extension of the executive branch. It is not that,” MacKay said.
“It is not designed that way. If that’s allowed to happen, our system will break down on the very principles of what representative democracy is all about.”
MacKay began working at the legislature in 1986 at the age of 22, having recently graduated with a degree in political science from the University of New Brunswick. His first job was that of a messenger, a role that involved delivering documents between Province House and the Coles Building. He soon moved into a position as the sole committee clerk on-staff. He was appointed a clerk assistant in 1990 and then clerk of the legislature in 2000.
In his time on the job, MacKay has seen an increased focus on security. A turning point came in the wake of a bomb blast outside the legislature in 1995. There were no fatalities as a result of the pipe bomb, planted by a frustrated former schoolteacher, but one man seated on a park bench nearby was struck by flying debris and suffered a broken leg.
The explosion took place one day after the Oklahoma City bombing, an event which killed at least 168 people.
“Prior to that, security was not a big consideration here at the legislature,” MacKay said.
“That event here had a ripple effect right across the country in the sense that if that could happen in little Prince Edward Island then we’re vulnerable as well and we need to take some steps to look at what we’re doing.”
Since that time, MacKay has overseen multiple reviews of the security apparatus at the P.E.I. legislature. Security decisions have been some of the most difficult he has had to make over the last three decades.
“You have to remember, what we’re trying to do is to get people to come in to our building. We want them to come in and see their legislature in action,” MacKay said.
“No one wants to come into a legislature and see an armed security officer in battle fatigues or things like that.”
MacKay’s departure will mark a first for P.E.I.’s legislature; his replacement will be chosen at the culmination of a public application process.
Previously, the position of clerk has been simply chosen by the premier or executive council.