Three members face Senate suspension
OTTAWA— The Senate took an unprecedented step Thursday by moving to suspend three embattled senators without pay — even though none has been formally charged with wrongdoing and one expects to take a medical leave.
The RCMP are investigating allegations of misspending against senators Mike Duffy, Patrick Brazeau and Pamela Wallin.
Claude Carignan, the government Senate leader, told the Senate on Thursday afternoon that all three should be suspended without pay due to “gross negligence” in their use of taxpayer dollars.
A simple majority vote would be needed to approve the proposals to suspend the three without pay. One Liberal senator suggested the Tories, who hold a majority in the Senate, will “fold” and vote to suspend Duffy, Wallin and Brazeau — three former Conservatives — and try to deflect attention away from the scandal that has become the focus of debate in the House of Commons.
But there was an indication that some senators felt they would be setting a dangerous precedent for three of their own who face no criminal charges related to their Senate spending, at a time when the auditor general is poring over the expenses of every member of the upper chamber to root out any wrongdoing.
“This is an extraordinary measure brought in at a time with the government … seeking public favour because they’re down in the polls — it’s the popular thing to do,” Liberal Sen. George Baker said.
“It’s the unpopular thing to say what I’m saying. … To have a motion so worded is not fair; it’s not fair.”
None of the three face charges from the Mounties, but their colleagues in the Senate are to vote on whether they should be removed from the red chamber until the end of the parliamentary session, an undefined period that could end in the fall of 2015 when the next federal election is scheduled. A yes vote would also bar them from spending any Senate dollars, and could affect their pensions.
“This is not about the criminal investigation,” said Sen. Vern White, a former police chief. “Every organization I’ve been in has an internal system that sanctions people as well. That’s what this is about.”
Under Senate rules, the upper chamber can take whatever actions it needs to protect itself, even withdrawing the parliamentary privileges of its members.
Duffy, Wallin and Brazeau weren’t in the chamber Thursday, as the Senate returned for a new session after prorogation, but the motions to suspend all three were introduced.
The Senate will debate all three motions next Tuesday at the earliest. It’s unclear when a final vote will take place.
All three will have a chance to make their case before the Senate next week. However, Brazeau is unlikely to attend due to a recent medical episode that saw police called to a Gatineau, Que., home and Brazeau taken to hospital. Duffy, similarly, told the Senate on Thursday that he was taking a medical leave of absence, which normally would allow him to continue receiving his $135,200 annual salary.
Carignan said that wouldn’t affect the move to suspend Duffy without pay.