Six new Ontario senators called ‘truly independent’

Trudeau will announce appointments today as transformation of upper chamber continues

OTTAWA— A former top cop, a senior banker, securities regulator and social justice advocate are among the six Ontario residents headed to the Senate, the Star has learned.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will announce the names of those chosen to fill Ontario vacancies in the upper chamber on Monday — and their appointments will be part of a historic transformation of the Senate. Those on the list are: Gwen Boniface, former commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police.

Tony Dean, a public policy professor who previously served as a senior bureaucrat in the Ontario government.

Sabi Marwah, recently retired as vicechairman and chief operating officer at Scotiabank.

Lucie Moncion, president and chief executive officer of the Alliance des caisses populaires de l’Ontario.

Kimberly Pate, executive director of the Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies.

Howard Wetston, a former federal court judge who led the Ontario Securities Commission and Ontario Energy Board.

“They’re not former candidates. They’re not former cronies or cabinet ministers.” GOVERNMENT SOURCE ON LATEST APPOINTEES

The new senators will sit as independents, key players in Trudeau’s attempt to transform the upper chamber into a less partisan and more respected institution.

That is driven home by Trudeau’s picks to fill current vacancies — all chosen for their career achievements rather than party affiliations, a senior government official said.

“They’re not former candidates. They’re not former cronies or cabinet ministers,” the official told the Star.

Even the announcement itself of new senators is being carefully done to downplay suggestions of partisanship by not having them appear with the prime minister or cabinet ministers.

“It’s a deliberate decision because he wants (it) made clear that they’re not part of a Liberal caucus. They are truly independent,” the source said.

The six were among 2,700 applicants from across Canada who applied for a Senate spot as the Liberals, for the first time, opened up the senate selection process, part of the new arm’s-length process brought in early in the government’s mandate by Democratic Institutions Minister Maryam Monsef.

A committee, led by former public servant and University of Ottawa chancellor Huguette Labelle, sifted through the applications, ultimately recommending more than 100 names to Trudeau to fill 21vacancies.

For the Ontario spots, Trudeau made the final selection from a list of 30 names.

Trudeau last week named five women and four men from British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island to the Senate. By the end of this week, another six new senators are expected to be named to fill vacancies from Quebec.

Together, the new additions will dramatically change the makeup of the Senate and how it operates.

When the newly appointed senators take their seats, the Senate will be faced with the unprecedented situation of having a plurality of independent senators.

The rather rapid change has already led to some tension in the Senate — an institution that does not traditionally deal with rapid changes.

Indeed, the changing makeup of Senate membership is now expected to bring further pressure on the Senate to reform its practices, notably around committee memberships, which give priority to those senators with party affiliations and limit the number of independent senators.

“Why should the Tories and the Liberals have all the power on committees when they have declining share of members in the senate at large?” the official said.

Sen. Peter Harder, the Liberal government’s representative in the upper chamber, told the Star last month that independents do not have representation on Senate committees proportional to their numbers in the chamber.

While membership on Senate committees might seem like a minor is- sue, it’s where a large part of the chamber’s work on government legislation gets done.

Last week, Harder told the CBC he was attempting to change that through negotiations. But should those negotiations fail, he said he’s considering forcing the Senate to vote on rejigging committee membership. The transformation could also have an effect on the Liberals’ policy agenda. Making the upper chamber more independent no longer assures the government will get its legislation through the Senate without challenge or amendment.