Legislative Changes Clarify Rules for Elected Officials

Legislative amendments, introduced today, Oct. 10, will provide clarity for elected officials and protect against potential conflicts of interest.

Changes to the House of Assembly Act, introduced by Mark Furey, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, will make it clear when members of the legislative assembly must resign if running for office for another level of government.

“This change will help ensure MLAs, who decide to run for another level of government, are free to focus on that new work and are protected from perceived or potential conflicts,” said Mr. Furey. “The people we serve also expect that there will be clear rules in place to determine when MLAs, who are pursuing new opportunities, should resign.”

Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Chuck Porter introduced changes to the Municipal Government Act and the Halifax Regional Municipality Charter which will require municipal councils to establish policies that address councillors running for other levels of government.

A change to the Municipal Elections Act addresses a leave of absence granted to a municipal employee who runs for councillor or who is in office. The leave of absence for the person holding office as a councillor expires immediately if the councillor has resigned according to a policy made under the Municipal Government Act and the Halifax Regional Municipality Charter.

“We recognize that there may be uncertainty around what councillors can do when running for office at the provincial or federal level of government,” said Mr. Porter. “By making these changes we are supporting municipal councils to implement a policy that clearly outlines the rules for councillors and addresses potential conflicts of interest.”

Quotes:

“The Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities supports the proposed legislation as it provides municipal councils with the tools to make decisions that are tailored to each particular local situation. The federation membership is always in favour of keeping autonomy and responsibility in the hands of councils.”

– Waye Mason, president of Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities.

Quick Facts:

• MLAs will be required to resign once they are selected by a federal political party, or if running as an independent candidate, once officially nominated as a candidate under the Canada Elections Act
• resignation will also be required once MLAs have been officially nominated to run in a municipal election, or once selected by a political party to run in another province’s election
• municipal policy must address whether a councillor resigns, takes a leave of absence with or without pay or outlines the duties a councillor can participate in

Additional Resources:

Elections Nova Scotia: https://electionsnovascotia.ca/voters/how-an-election-works/election-basics

Elections Canada: https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=pol&document=index&dir=can/bck&lang=e

Parliament of Canada Act: https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/P-1/