Stephen Harper

The Senate expenses scandal involved Senator Mike Duffy and a personal payment of $90,000 by Harper's Chief of Staff Nigel Wright to reimburse disputed expenses. Duffy's trial exposed interventions by the Prime Minister's Office and seriously damaged the Harper government politically.

Person targeted by the proceedings

Mike Duffy

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

Under Harper, new communications rules restricted or centralised federal scientists' contact with the media. Researchers organised a 'Death of Evidence' demonstration in 2012, and scientific journals accused the government of muzzling science.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

The Harper government introduced counterterrorism Bill C-51, expanding security powers and creating new offences. Human rights organisations warned of potential infringements of civil liberties. When presenting the legislation, Harper also cited mosques among places where radicalisation could occur, raising concerns among Muslim organisations.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

The Harper government introduced a policy requiring individuals to remove their niqab when publicly taking the oath of citizenship. Zunera Ishaq challenged it and the Federal Court ruled in her favour; the Federal Court of Appeal subsequently dismissed the government's appeal.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

During an election debate, Harper referred to 'new and existing and old-stock Canadians' while defending his policy on healthcare coverage for asylum seekers. The expression triggered immediate controversy over a possible division between categories of Canadians.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Following the failure of the Nadon appointment, Harper's office stated that it would have been inappropriate for him to take a call from Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin concerning the nomination. The episode prompted an unusual public confrontation between the Prime Minister and the Chief Justice.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Direct responsibility

Automated calls directed voters to false polling locations during the 2011 election. The Federal Court concluded that electoral fraud had occurred in challenges concerning several constituencies, and Michael Sona, a former Conservative campaign worker in Guelph, was convicted in the local criminal case.

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

The Auditor General criticised management of the F-35 fighter replacement programme, finding that significant decisions had been taken before the official announcement and that an adequate plan to manage the specific risks and costs had not been established.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Institutional responsibility

Harper requested the dissolution of Parliament in September 2008, although legislation passed under his government had normally scheduled the next election for October 2009, prompting accusations that he had circumvented the spirit of his own reform.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Elections Canada challenged an arrangement under which the Conservative Party transferred funds to local campaigns, which returned them to purchase advertising, allegedly allowing the national spending limit for 2006 to be exceeded. Conservative officials were charged in 2011.

State of the evidence

Settlement

Person targeted by the proceedings

des responsables du parti

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

Harper's minority government was found in contempt of Parliament for failing to provide sufficient information on the costs of bills, F-35 fighter jets and prisons. On 25 March 2011, the House passed a motion of no confidence based on that finding, triggering an election.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Institutional responsibility

The Auditor General concluded that Parliament had not been clearly informed that some funds originally presented in a request relating to border infrastructure were intended to finance projects in the G8 region. The fund's project selection and transparency were strongly criticised.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Institutional responsibility

Harper again prorogued Parliament at the end of 2009, as controversy grew over the transfer of Afghan detainees and Parliament's access to government documents. The decision suspended parliamentary business until March 2010.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

The Harper government refused to provide Parliament with all unredacted documents concerning the treatment of Afghan detainees, citing national security. In April 2010, Speaker Peter Milliken ruled that the House had a constitutional right to request those documents and found a prima facie breach of parliamentary privilege.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Institutional responsibility

The Harper government replaced the mandatory long-form census with a voluntary survey, prompting opposition from statisticians, researchers, provinces and organisations concerned about deteriorating data quality. Chief Statistician Munir Sheikh resigned.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Facing a Liberal-NDP coalition supported by the Bloc and a confidence vote he was at risk of losing, Harper asked Governor General Michaëlle Jean to prorogue Parliament. The request was granted and the vote postponed.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Shortly after the 2006 election, Harper appointed David Emerson to the Cabinet, although Emerson had been re-elected as a Liberal MP only days earlier. MPs called for an investigation into whether an advantage had been offered to induce him to switch parties.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility