Jobs subsidy for immigration minister's longstanding church raises 'perception' questions: ethics specialist

OTTAWA — When Immigration Minister Lena Metlege Diab dropped by a church kids camp this summer, she came to pose for photos to highlight the funding that came from the Canada Summer Jobs program.

It might not have seemed unusual: members of Parliament have a hand in helping organizations in their riding get the summer-job subsidies in the first place. MPs get lists of organizations in their ridings that apply for the subsidy, and recommend who should get it.

But Metlege Diab had a more personal relationship with this particular Lebanese parish church in Halifax than just representing it as an MP. She has been a parishioner there since the 1980s.

The situation does not seem to violate either the Conflict of Interest Act or codes that public office holders must follow, but one government ethics specialist said it touches on issues around perceptions of conflict, as well as what questions the department responsible for administering the money asks of MPs who may have ties to the organizations whose requests they review.

“Do I think that the minister, in this case, has broken the act or code? No,” said Ian Stedman, who previously worked for Ontario’s integrity commissioner and now teaches as an associate professor at York University.

“Do I think that the program may want to protect itself by having a higher bar or a higher standard than the act or code? Yes.”

The Canada Summer Jobs program offers a wage subsidy for employers to hire those aged 15 to 30 each summer. This year, the government announced it would spend $25 million more to create another 6,000 spots to combat the country’s high youth unemployment rate.

How it works is simple: An organization, including religious ones, applies for the subsidy. The department that administers it assesses the application to ensure it meets the criteria and then asks MPs for their feedback based on a recommended list, which, according to the program’s website, is to ensure “local priorities” are met.

Their feedback, it says, is then used to inform the government’s final decisions.

In Metlege Diab’s case, a spokeswoman in her Halifax West constituency office said she provided her feedback back in March, two months before Prime Minister Mark Carney promoted her to cabinet. She has represented the riding federally since 2021.

“The final funding decisions by (Employment and Social Development Canada) were made during the writ period,” the spokeswoman wrote, referring to the period during the spring federal election.

Her office also confirmed she had been a parishioner of the church in question since its was established in the 1980s

“It was wonderful to visit Our Lady of Lebanon Parish and see how the Canada Summer Jobs program is helping our youth gain valuable work experience while supporting meaningful summer opportunities. Thank you for welcoming me — enjoy the rest of your summer!” Metlege Diab wrote in a recent Facebook post .

The government confirmed the church received around $50,000 to fund 10 jobs.

Last year, the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner’s office released an advisory opinion directing MPs on when they should refrain from giving their opinion on whether a particular organization should receive funding.

It added that an entity is not precluded from applying for government money just because an elected official or appointee has a personal connection to it, like a membership.

The office advised that MPs should not provide opinions on applications from groups that employ or are owned by a family member, or where they have a “private interest.”

Stedman says under the rules, “private interest” is defined in terms of it being a financial interest, which is narrow.

He says that narrowness is evident when it comes to the Canada Summer Jobs program, which he said is unique in that the government asks MPs to directly weigh in on a funding decision. “This is really them saying outright, ‘We want you to help influence how our money is spent.'”

While federal ethics rules concentrate on the issue of a public officer using their influence to benefit financially, the program itself is about the community.

“It’s an organization she cares about. It’s a church that she cares about, and the better they do, the longer they survive to be there for her and her community. And she benefits from that in a kind of interpersonal way,” Stedman said.

“It’s just not the kind of benefit that’s contemplated by the act, which can be unpalatable … for I think our modern take on what conflicts of interest could be.”

He said he believes the program, in asking MPs for their recommendations on funding, should also ask whether they have any personal connections to the organizations on the provided lists.

“The public expects that their members of Parliament are going to do everything they can to avoid the perception of a conflict, because we want our government officials to care about public trust in their behaviour, and public trust is about perception as much as it is about reality.”

In a statement, Employment and Social Development Canada did not directly say whether it asks MPs about having any personal ties to the organizations whose applications they review, but members are reminded of the rules under the Conflict of Interest Act and Code of Conduct.

“To ensure their recommendations are considered, they must attest to their compliance with the code by completing the required electronic confirmation. The code provides guidance to MPs regarding the disclosure of conflicts of interest and ensures transparency and accountability in their decision-making, including in the Canada Summer Jobs MP recommendation process,” wrote spokeswoman Liana Brault.

“The department provides final recommendations of projects to be funded after examining all applications against program criteria and national priorities and reviewing feedback from members of Parliament.”

National Post

staylor@postmedia.com

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