Bill to (finally) create an ombudsperson passes 2nd reading in P.E.I. Legislature

Legislation to create an office for an ombudsperson passed second reading in the P.E.I. legislature Tuesday.

If the bill becomes law it would make Prince Edward Island the last province in Canada to have the position, meant to investigate citizen complaints regarding government services.

"That ability for the public to ask for oversight on the workings of government is something I think is really important," said Opposition leader Peter Bevan-Baker.

"So this is a big part of that step forward."

Herb Dickieson, the only New Democrat ever elected to the P.E.I. legislature, introduced a bill to create an ombudsman in 1998 but that was defeated by the PC government of Pat Binns.

The Liberals promised to create the position under Robert Ghiz in the lead-up to the 2007 election, but didn't follow through after they won.

Both the PCs and the Greens included an ombudsman in their 2019 campaign platforms.

The bill currently making its way through the legislature was prepared by the premier's office. But it's been presented to the house by the all-party Standing Committee on Legislative Management, because it would create a new independent officer of the legislature.

Premier Dennis King wasn't in the house when the bill passed second reading, so was not immediately available for comment.

Power to investigate grievances with government

P.E.I.'s ombudsperson would have the power to launch an investigation into government decisions, actions or lack of action that "aggrieves or may aggrieve a person," according to the legislation.

The position would bring with it the power to summon witnesses and require them to provide information under oath.

During debate on the bill, Bevan-Baker tried to beef up the new position's power even further with an amendment to allow the ombudsperson to access privileged cabinet documents related to government appointments, but the amendment was easily defeated, with several PC members speaking against it.

A spokesperson for the premier's office said once the Ombudsperson Act is in place, the province will finally be able to fully enact legislation passed in 2017 to protect government whistleblowers, though that law would have to be amended.

N.S. ombudsman received 2,217 complaints

The office of Nova Scotia's ombudsman handled 2,217 complaints and inquiries last year, resolving more than half of those at the assessment stage while launching eight formal investigations.

The web page for the Nova Scotia's ombudsman provides examples of some of the issues Islanders might expect their ombudsperson to take on, if and when one is appointed.

In one case in Nova Scotia, a person went to the ombudsman after going to the Police Complaints Commission with concerns about how a municipal police force handled the investigation involving the death of a family member.

In another case, the Nova Scotia ombudsman launched a formal investigation to determine why a senior's home care was discontinued.

Recommendations for change are key, says MLA

In both cases the ombudsman provided recommendations to government to improve the system, and Bevan-Baker said that is the key benefit the position could provide to improve the lives of Islanders.

He said without an ombudsman on P.E.I., Islanders have been going to their local MLAs with their complaints about government.

"We deal with individuals and individual concerns, but very often, if the concerns are legitimate, they give notice of systemic deficiencies. And if we can fix the systemic deficiencies, then everybody is better off."

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