The Honour Principle

"When a senator is appointed, they go to a series of meetings and I can assure you the law clerk ... is the one that impresses upon them that they must own property in that province and be residents of that province. That is done for every single senator, so nobody can say they've never been informed of that."
(retired) Senator Sharon Carstairs

Senator Carstairs resigned because she reached the age of retirement from the Senate of Canada. Another senator also recently formally resigned - before reaching the age of retirement from her senate position. Senator Joyce Fairbairn had two more years to go before retirement. At age 72 she was receiving 'round-the-clock care as a result of declining health.

Up to then she was regularly appearing in the Senate and casting her vote along party lines; no fewer than a dozen times. Doing so four months after a geriatric psychiatrist had her declared legally incompetent as a result of her worsening condition due to Alzheimer's disease.

Senator Fairbairn was dedicated to her work and was an outstanding member of the senate. But her condition was obvious, she was frail and should not have been kept in her position.


Matters have not gone well of late in the Senate. Last year a senator was finally removed because of a criminal conviction that he misused senate funds and personnel for personal use.  This week a senator was put on hold with salary, but escorted out of the chamber with charges pending related to a domestic incident, charged with assault and sexual assault.

And now, an audit indicates that only seven of Canada's current 104 senators have been cleared of claiming any kind of housing allowance since 2011. A three-member investigative senate committee is undertaking a probe that includes interviewing roughly 50 of their peers to determine whether or not their claims for housing allowance have been legitimate.

Four senators have been revealed to have claimed substantial amounts for housing allowance annually when they have full residence within the 100-kilometer area of the National Capital Region. "The issue here is integrity of public finances. The solution is turn everything over to an auditor. The auditor general would be a good candidate to ensure integrity in the country's finances", the considered opinion of a parliamentary and governance expert from University of Moncton.

It is up to Senate staff and members of the Senate's internal economy committee to red-flag and review any expense claims that appear suspicious. Housing allowances can top out at $21,000 annually. Living expense claims can include hotel accommodations and food, but can also represent apartment or house rentals.

Senators are required to declare yearly whether their primary residence is within 100 kilometres of the capital and swear a statement to that effect. Senators Mike Duffy, Mac Harb, Patrick Brazeau and Pamela Wallin have all declared their primary residences to be elsewhere than the National Capital Region, despite having lived in Ottawa for many years, voting there and receiving election notices there.

Senator Wallin is the latest member whose claims have been identified as posing an ethical problem. She faces scrutiny over more than $300,000 (mostly travel expenses) claimed since September 2010. She, as well as Senator Duffy haven't lived in their home provinces for decades, despite claiming that their primary residences are there, not in Ottawa.