Topic
Fraser's job is to watchdog premier but his son has key role working for Christy Clark.
BC Conflict of Interest Commissioner Paul Fraser: Urged by Integrity BC to recuse himself.
Abbotsford MLA startles legislature with attack on Clark. 'He'll lose to us,' Coleman fires back.
[Update from the editor: B.C. conflict commissioner Paul Fraser announced this morning that he has removed himself from hearing MLA John van Dongen's complaint against Premier Clark. Read Tyee legislative reporter Andrew MacLeod's report here.]
"Careful supervision of the disclosure process proves the adage that 'sunlight is always the best disinfectant.'" -- B.C. Conflict of Interest Commissioner Paul Fraser
Would you go to a doctor who couldn't diagnose a common cold?
Or hire a plumber who didn't spot a leaking pipe?
So why does British Columbia have a conflict of interest commissioner who doesn't recognize a conflict when he's in one himself?
Only in B.C. you say? Pity indeed that Paul Fraser sees nothing wrong with investigating a complaint by independent MLA John van Dongen against Premier Christy Clark's actions while the commissioner’s son John Paul Fraser:
• Holds a senior B.C. government political job doing communications for Clark and her colleagues;
• Worked on Clark's successful B.C. Liberal party leadership campaign;
• Used to work for the father of Clark's son, her ex-husband political consultant and former lobbyist Mark Marissen.
Not understanding that such a perceived conflict of interest clearly disqualifies Fraser from ruling on van Dongen's complaint is astonishing!
Fraser told the Vancouver Sun's Jonathan Fowlie that he had no trouble dealing with van Dongen's investigation request.
"I don't perceive a problem in making a decision in this case that will have nothing to do with my son's career," Fraser said.
"If I had any difficulty, or felt that I in any way couldn't handle this file like I do every file -- on the basis that I will go where it takes me, and I will make the decision that needs to be made without, dare I say it, fear or favour -- then I should pack it in," he added.
Ironically, Paul Fraser's own message in last year's commissioner's report states:
"The work that this Office does is part of the covenant of integrity that Members of the Legislature have with the citizens of British Columbia. The work is important as a democratic safeguard to ensure that private interest is not allowed to trump public duty."
Hard to disagree with that concept.
Van Dongen's complaint
But it's even harder to see how the commissioner can rule on van Dongen's complaint, which alleges that Clark participated in some discussions on the $1 billion sale of B.C. Rail in 2003 but excused herself from others because at that time Marissen was a consultant to CIBC World Markets, the firm supervising the privatization.
Abbotsford-South MLA van Dongen is a former B.C. Liberal cabinet minister who quit the party in part over B.C. Rail issues and the government's payment of $6 million in legal fees incurred by former ministerial aides David Basi and Bob Virk, despite their making surprise guilty pleas in Oct. 2010.
He is also an intervener at his own expense at Auditor General John Doyle's court application to obtain government records about the indemnity granted Basi and Virk and other officials whose legal fees were charged to taxpayers.
Fraser is a well respected lawyer and neither his integrity, nor his son's, are being questioned. But his judgment is dead wrong.
The argument van Dongen makes is powerful.
"I believe there is a reasonable apprehension of bias on the part of the commissioner," he said in a statement Friday.
"I must stress that at this time I am not making an allegation that the commissioner is guilty of actual bias. I am simply saying that there is a basis for a reasonable apprehension of bias on these facts which requires that someone other than Paul Fraser carry out the duties under the Members' Conflict of Interest Act."
In a telephone interview Sunday night van Dongen said he finds it disturbing that neither Fraser nor Clark understand the principles behind his complaint.
"It's a real concern that neither Paul Fraser nor Christy Clark acknowledge the real issue here," van Dongen said. "There's a critical need to maintain the independence of the conflict commissioner. It should embody the highest principles of judicial independence."
'Totally unfair': Clark
On Friday in Kamloops, Clark claimed that it was "totally unfair" of opponents to question Fraser's integrity to go after her.
"Paul Fraser is a highly respected lawyer in British Columbia. He was selected by a bi-partisan committee in the Legislature and he has never been accused of bias," she told the Kamloops Daily News.
"He's a man of great integrity. His reputation is absolutely spotless. It's totally unfair to drag his reputation through the mud as a way to launch a political attack on me," Clark alleged.
But van Dongen rejects that characterization of his objections to Fraser's role.
"It isn't just the situation of his son being in a very senior position in government communications, it's the comments that Paul Fraser doesn't perceive that as a problem," he said Sunday.
'Fraser must recuse himself': Green leader Sterk
The request by van Dongen that Fraser remove himself from the investigation also has the strong support of Green Party leader Jane Sterk and Integrity B.C., the watchdog group promoting political ethics and accountability.
In an email Saturday to 24 hours Sterk states: "Paul Fraser must recuse himself from investigating John Van Dongen's complaint against Christy Clark."
"Van Dongen is making very serious allegations about Clark's potential conflict of interest on the B.C. Rail sale."
"No matter what Fraser does, the fact that his son is a friend of Ms. Clark and is employed in a senior position in the government means there will be a perception of bias."
"Fraser should ask a senior member of his office to undertake this investigation," Sterk concludes.
And Integrity B.C. also believes Fraser must remove himself from the investigation.
"The appearances of Mr. Fraser's conflict in this matter -- which is already so rife with very real conflicts and additional appearances of conflict -- should make it readily apparent to him that it is inappropriate for him to conduct this investigation. The public deserves no less," Integrity B.C. executive director Dermod Travis told 24 hours and The Tyee by email Sunday.
NDP expresses trust in Fraser
But surprisingly, the B.C. New Democrats are supporting Fraser's position.
"We think Mr. Fraser has a high level of integrity over the past years and we support his judgement -- we think he will do the right thing," NDP MLA Shane Simpson told The Tyee Monday.
"This is an issue about Ms. Clark, not Mr. Fraser," said Simpson, MLA for Vancouver-Hastings.
Fraser has already conducted one investigation and rejected any wrongdoing on Clark's part since his son was appointed assistant deputy minister of Government Communications and Public Engagement on April 8, 2011.
That investigation was requested May 5, 2011 by a member of the public to determine if Clark had, in the words of the Commissioner's 2011 annual report:
"Breached the Members' Conflict of Interest Act by appearing in and using government announcements while campaigning in a by-election to win her seat in Vancouver-Point Grey."
"The individual believed that government resources might have been used to 'facilitate' the premier's by-election campaign, including her attendance at public and media events," it stated.
And Clark certainly found lots of good news announcements to make before the May 11, 2011 vote that she narrowly won over the NDP's David Eby by less than 600 votes.
For example, on April 21, Clark celebrated Earth Day with a $4.7 million "green investment" grant to Simon Fraser University to fund a biomass energy project, speaking and watching a singing choir of happy kids.
And Clark announced $13.3 million in funding for a new home for families visiting their sick kids at Vancouver's B.C. Children's Hospital on April 28.
Fraser found no conflict in any of Clark's actions, responding directly to the member of the public five days after receiving the request to investigate, saying in a May 10, 2011 letter that:
"I can find anything in either written or electronic form that would support the suggestion that government resources were used in whole or in part, to promote the premier's by-election campaign."
"The fact that she is, at the same time, seeking election to the Legislative Assembly does not and should not prohibit her from carrying on her duties as premier, including making public interest announcements and attending events recording government policy and actions," he concluded.
Power of perception
Fraser's ruling may be completely fair based on the facts he investigated.
But just as in the van Dongen situation, his letter of response did not disclose that his son was by that time working as a senior member of Clark's communications team, hired under an Order In Council that can be rescinded by the premier at any time.
Perhaps that isn't important. It might have made absolutely no difference to the member of the public who requested the investigation or to media who reported it.
But that's the whole point about "perceived conflict of interest" -- it isn't that a conflict exists, just that there is a perception of conflict which creates doubt.
It's unfortunate for both Fraser and his son that their careers have collided in this way.
However it is far more unfortunate that Fraser not only didn't even perceive a problem but also failed to disclose that potential to van Dongen right from the start of the MLA's complaint.
Now the only solution is for Fraser to remove himself from the investigation.
But will other conflict of interest cases also put Fraser in an equally untenable position?
And it's troubling that Clark is already holding out Fraser's report into van Dongen's complaint as the final word, saying to the Kamloops Daily News that she’ll be glad when Fraser's B.C. Rail probe is over: "because this will finally, with this report, stick a fork in it."
Is that the premier pre-judging Fraser's unfinished report in public? Not politically wise and definitely not reassuring.
Fraser's reappointment pending
In another twist of political fate, Fraser's own reappointment for another term as commissioner is due to happen shortly.
New Democrat MLA Leonard Krog declined all comment on Fraser's reappointment or even the status of it when contacted Saturday.
Krog sits on the all party special committee that will soon advise the Legislature on the matter.
It's time that the public had a little sunlight shone on the Conflict of Interest Commissioner's status and how he could continue in his job given his current conflicted state.
But given Krog's colleague Shane Simpson's comments on Fraser's position, there seems little doubt that Fraser will be reappointed to another five-year term with NDP and B.C. Liberal support. ![[Tyee]](http://thetyee.cachefly.net/ui/img/ico_fishie.png){kind=small}
Read more: Politics,
36
Login or register to post comments
Rolly-polly
27 weeks ago
well...
BC is corrupt... everyone knows it.
LJones
27 weeks ago
Confict
What a tangle of conflicted interests Tielman is unintentionally showcasing! First of all, Tielman is a paid Tyee columnist and that makes him a paid NDP advocate because The Tyee is funded by NDP and Big Labour interests. He is also a paid consulted to labour unions. So anything he writes here has got a political motivation to it and cannot be treated seriously. Van Dongen launched his "investigation" at a time when he had just left the Liberal party to join the Conservative party. The obviousness of that conflict of interest seems lost on Tielman. Apparently, judging by Van Dongen's submission to the conflict commissioner, he has built his theories with the help of a blogger whose highly sexist and disgusting personal attacks against Premier Clark suggest a motivation that is not that of a reasonable and unconflicted person. Frankly it's all quite bewildering. I'd like to know why The Tyee does not take a fully transparent approach to disclosing how much NDP money goes to Tielman, and why they are so ashamed of the labour and NDP money that they skim over it on their web page supposedly devoted to disclosure. What a miasma of conflict!
G West
27 weeks ago
@LJones?
Did you not get the message?
@LJones
You said:
"The Tyee is now censoring comment posters who provide opinions that columnists personally disagree with."
Not sure what you're referring to here.
You said:
"This is what you get in a website that accepts half a million bucks a year from Big Labour and rich NDPers I guess."
Interesting characterization. Here's a link to a page about our funding for anyone who's interested:
http://thetyee.ca/About/Funding/
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
Full public Inquiry only!
The NDP are not going to get into this debate because they know that one day Fraser will be making a decision that might effect one of them. You don't kick the person who might one day be powerful enough to make a judgment on you.
Fraser should do the honourable thing and recuse himself. Without that everything he decides will be political fodder. Christy will claim she did nothing wrong and the public will not believe her. Fraser has a fall back position which is that it will be decided in the next election. Unfortunately justice will not be served as the truth will not come out without a full public inquiry.
LJones
27 weeks ago
Tielman's agenda
Yes, an earlier comment thread in which I aired the facts about Tielman's conflict was temporarily taken down – and then put back up after others noticed what had happened. The fact is that Tielman is a propagandist who has previously refused to reveal how much money he takes from the NDP and Big Labour via The Tyee to spin his stories.
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
Secondly...
... who is LJones. A public Affairs Bureau staffer? Bill Belsey?
David Beers
27 weeks ago
LJ Jones
The Tyee is not 'funded by the NDP' as you say. Nor is the majority of its budget 'funded by Big Labour interests'. As our page here
http://thetyee.ca/About/Funding/
notes, one investor is ...
"Working Enterprises, a Vancouver-based labour-affiliated investment group that has as part of its mission funding socially-responsible organizations..."
The Tyee is proud to be an example of how venture capital affiliated with unions can help create a publication that runs a diverse set of views with editorial independence.
Bill Tieleman's viewpoint is one of those we are proud to share here because he is well informed and clear in his analysis. Clearly the editors of 24 Hours have come to the same conclusion as his columns appear there as well. As have producers at CKNW and other media outlets who have regularly sought to share Bill's views with their audiences.
If anyone is not clear on the fact that Bill Tieleman is a communications consultant whose clients include unions as well as other entities, let me say so here. BC's media landscape is well populated by people who write opinion columns in addition to their 'day jobs'. Our duty is to be transparent about those connections, which we are in Bill's bio, which appears when you click on his byline:
http://thetyee.ca/Bios/Bill_Tieleman/
Rolly-polly
27 weeks ago
once again...
"What a tangle of conflicted interests Tielman is unintentionally showcasing! First of all, Tielman is a paid Tyee columnist and that makes him a paid NDP advocate because The Tyee is funded by NDP and Big Labour interests. He is also a paid consulted to labour unions."
I find it continually amusing how people wine about "the tyee" and its funding of a paltry $500,000 from labour, if that is indeed the number. Meanwhile they say NOTHING about the multitude of dollars from corporate coffers going to the actual GOVERNMENT from corporations, or money corps pay to papers like the Vancouver Sun etc...
Yes, but what the real problem is, is the half a million dollars the BC fed gives the Tyee to publish news and columns that support THE OTHER SIDE of the issue.
Get a life.
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
LJones' Agenda.
OK I know where Bill stands on issues and he males not secret about his orientation. Now how about you jones? Whoa re you, what is your background and what is your purpose here except to always focus on the messenger and never on the message? Either put up or...!
Rolly-polly
27 weeks ago
Ljones....
What is the difference between Tielman and the countless baised columnists in the Sun, Province or Globe? It's a columnist, they are under no duty to be fence sitters, in fact their entire purpose is to present a side. I guess you just get all upset because the side Bill presents isn't yours.
LJones
27 weeks ago
message
The Tyee's murky NDP support apparently is such a shameful secret that The Tyee will not talk about it. Don't want to take it from me? Fortunately you can read about it here http://citycaucus.com/2012/05/money-laundering-accusations-result-in-the-tyee-hiding-donate-page-link/ as well as here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tyee#Funding (The reference to "ongoing sale of equity" appears to point to the avenue by which party interests and big labour funnel funds to the site.)
The key thing for flagrantly un-transparent posters like "skywalker" is to try to attack the messenger for daring to point out these conflicts. Tielman's band of sycophants, my message to you is that you can keep trying to fool people but I'm not buying it.
cariboocooper
27 weeks ago
conflict appointment
I'm not sure how this could happen when a very important position is filled by the govt with the person's son working with the Premier.... oh i forgot.. the Liberals are in power. The new commissioner has absolutely no shame, no ethics, and no political impartiality in a case like this.
The NDP would appear to be complicit.
cariboocooper
27 weeks ago
conflict
Did anyone ever see the show "Liar, Liar" about a man who was forced to tell the truth for one day? Can I wish that on Clark, Dix, and Cummins?
Tieleman
27 weeks ago
Bill Tieleman - Paul Fraser has now recused himself
A short while ago BC Conflict of Interest Commissioner Paul Fraser released a statement saying he will recuse himself from the John van Dongen complaint investigation - full statement is here: http://www.coibc.ca/down/news_releases/news_release_13nov2012.pdf
Rolly-polly
27 weeks ago
again
Look out, the wikipedia page is supreme proof.
Again, Ljones, the point is the Sun and Province are all on the take, but you seem totally fine with that, don't you? So why should we care about your complaints that the Tyee, much smaller than the sun, is biased?
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
"flagrantly un-transparent posters"
So LJones this description does not apply to you? How is that? If you just once debated the merits of the issue, you might have some credibility. You are constantly attacking a contributor to the Tyee without once giving us something on which to base a decision on your own credibility. So you as a flagrantly un-transparent, anonymous poster are hardly the person to be accusing others.
I know Bill Tieleman only from reading his comments here. I know his history only what I have read about. I am not currently a member of any party although I am unabashedly opposed to the Campbell/Christy lieberals. If some right-wing identifiable person wrote a contributing column to the Tyee, I might be critical of the information presented but I certainly would not be as obsessed with personally attacking the writer as you seem to be.
It just suggests you are a paid hack. So, prove I am wrong and then you and Bill can have at it on a level playing field here and I will read the play-by- play.
bcguy
27 weeks ago
Since getting the job has he
Since getting the job has he actually ever found anything wrong with anyhting he has looked at. It might be time for Adrian Dix to shuffle the guys on the committee.
LJones
27 weeks ago
The trouble with Tieleman
The problem is pretty basic – not everybody knows that The Tyee is a big labour-NDP "astroturfing" tool meant to give the appearance of being a folksy grassroots west coast website. The B.C. Federation of Labour doesn't give The Tyee hundreds of thousands of dollars for nothing. Do the website's visitors know that Tieleman used to be communications director of the BC Fed? Do they know that he was communications director for former NDP premier Glen Clark? A position that made him a very close colleague of Adrian Dix? If you know that, that's great. What concerns me is that some people probably come here thinking that Tieleman is somehow an honest source of real information and unbiased analysis. He's not.
G West
27 weeks ago
@LJones
I'm generally against any kind of censorship - as David Beers knows.
On the other hand, if Beers decided to block certain posters who are, in essence, simply posting here as Trolls I'd have very little problem with that.
Tieleman, and anyone who knows anything about the political history of this province since the last century know this, has NEVER been shy about who he's worked for and what he did for them.
The only thing you're harming with your continual posts on this subject is your own reputation.
And Tieleman, by the way, posts under his own name and is (as has been demonstrated earlier) quite happy to respond to reasonable questions.
David Beers
27 weeks ago
LJones
The City Caucus post is libelous as I said in my comment posted after it, and you draw the wrong conclusion from the Wikipedia page (which also happens to be out of date). The BC Federation of Labour does not give the Tyee hundreds of thousands of dollars. I will spend no more effort refuting your false claims. The Tyee's award winning content speaks for itself and readers are free to draw their own conclusions.
LJones
27 weeks ago
Tyee style?
I've been threatened by hotheads on this website before, in such a flagrant way that the site's comment moderator had to come in and remove some very hostile and personal language. I guess this is what happens if you dare to ask questions about Bill Tieleman, chief spin doctor of Big Labour.
freebear
27 weeks ago
Get a Chinese conflict of Interest Commissioner!
Let's use the foreign worker program here too Christy!!
What a joke; government for cronies it seems; not the common good!
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
This is becoming a Joke.
I have been watching LJones' posts since he started. How does one threaten an anonymous poster? Is his latest ridiculous claim the last hollow click of an empty debating arsenal?
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
Bill
Did you by any chance take all LJones' marbles when you two were in elementary school?
zorya
27 weeks ago
The root of the issue
The real question is not if Fraser can be trusted on this issue, but rather whether he can be trusted at all. If his son's career puts the Commissioner's impartiality at risk here, does it not also impact any and all files that involve the government?
Be careful what you ask for. Once opened, a can of worms can rarely be closed.
LJones
27 weeks ago
worthy
It's almost like Skywalker had media training from Tieleman - or maybe even IS Tieleman! The strategy is deny deny deny attack and evade. No wonder Tieleman was so successful in the 1990s as a member with Adrian Dix of the inner circle around Glen Clark. Those guys came up with the $400 million fast ferry debacle and now, I suspect, they are busy plotting the next one. Sigh.
paisley
27 weeks ago
The commissioner has recused
The commissioner has recused himself after the public has become aware of his own possible conflict of interest. That's one hell of a revelation. Does any bureaucrat know how to do their job properly or is this asking to much. The taxpayers pay these people a premium...for what?
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
@ Ljones
Another desperate gambit? Divert to fast Ferries? Lieberal boondoggles have reduced fast ferries to a pee in the ocean by now. I guess that is why it was necessary to cancel the fall sitting, spend millions on ads trumpeting their old vision and resort to a constant reminder of photo ops. I guess that is why Christy is riding high in the polls eh? So now what doesn't work on Bill is suppose to work on me? You take yourself far too seriously Jones.
So my advice is that unless you have an opinion on something other than Bill personally, you leave yourself open to ridicule and so far it is deserved.
I've never met Bill and never had to listen to him except maybe on a radio or TV show. My reaction is toward people like you who want to deny the facts and expect others to not see the gambit of trying to discredit the writer while never offering a reasoned argument to support their position.
But Finally you have come up with Fast Ferries which is so old and worn out that the dog won't hunt. We have had too many years of Campbell and Christy fiascos to worry about that one old issue. BC Rail by itself is bigger.
Tieleman
27 weeks ago
Bill Tieleman and the Jones boy
Thanks to Skywalker, G West and others for their kind comments and to David Beers for correcting the gross and libel-ridden misinformation posted by LJones. I guess the events of the day - and the thought of Christy Clark being investigated by an external conflict commissioner - unhinged LJones more than usual.
For the record, again, I am a communications consultant with clients in labour, non-profits and business. I support the NDP provincially and federally but as my column here proves again, not uncritically. I am not paid by the NDP - I actually give them money.
If people don't know my background it's awfully easy to find. If they can't figure out my general political persuasion just from reading what I write, they should stick to the comic strips.
The fact that The Tyee allows anonymous people like LJones to submit preposterous and offensive posts is a testament to defending free speech.
off-the-radar
27 weeks ago
another great column
Thanks Bill, another great column. Also really enjoyed your recent piece on the American election results.
LJones' comments are so bad they've actually verged into camp.
But what is up with the NDP?! Unbelievable. Aren't they reading the progressive criticism of Obama and reading the provincial political blogs?!
As AGT, Norm, Laila, Ross and Harvey (and their devoted readers) have repeatedly noted citizens want a government, an Opposition, MLAs, and a parliamentary system, with integrity who serve the citizens of BC. Vicky Huntingdon and Bob Simpson fulfill this role admirably.
Too many NDP MLAs, on the other hand, seem to be getting sucked into a quagmire of easy ethics including: junkets disguised as Speaker-approved trips, rubber-stamping questionable appointments and processes, and e-voting about to be shoved down our collective throats.
Voters want much more than that. The NDP's apparent strategy of simply being the lesser of two evils come May 2013 is not only deeply disappointing but also misreads an alienated electorate.
mission impossible
27 weeks ago
The ruling will be exhoneration..
The reason?
Charles River and Associates.
http://powellriverpersuader.blogspot.ca/2012/11/mirror-mirror-on-wall-whos-leakiest-and.html
Skywalker
27 weeks ago
Agreed off-the-radar.
I think off-the-radar is on the money here. If these NDP folks don't get off their duffs and start proving that they are more than passive observers of a Christy demise, they may be in for a shock. At the moment my NDP MLA is a colossal dud and I keep wondering why they are getting paid for this. I wish they would do some work.
lynn
27 weeks ago
no doubt, mission impossible -
When the Fiberal gang appoint a 'fairness advisor' always expect the opposite outcome.
Chris Keam
27 weeks ago
@LJones
"The strategy is deny deny deny attack and evade."
I notice you haven't taken me up on my offer to verify you are not a paid troll.
I'll bet once upon a time you had big dreams to use your communication skills to make positive change in the world. And now, reduced to questioning the integrity of others, from behind a curtain, at the behest of a gov't lurching towards an ignominious end. Sux2BU as the kids say. I almost feel sorry for you.
aDriftwood
26 weeks ago
@cariboocooper
No, you can wish it on Christie Clark regarding her involvement in the crooked BC Rail sale and if you're lucky we might finally get some answers. But don't count on it because the government has controlled the courts since they got in power. It is obvious to anyone who has looked that they appoint judges who are partial to their corruption (sorry, there is no other word) in favour of monetary payoffs, and it is obvious that they either destroy information outright which would incriminate them, or they bury it so deep you can't dig it up with a shovel.
zalm
26 weeks ago
For those
...whose tinfoil hats are causing acute mental distress due to impaired circulation, try a looser model.
http://www.ebaumsworld.com/pictures/view/226456/
Some of the conspiracies that get repeated here are too ludicrous for my dog to believe...