Parliamentary Committee Notes: Master Overview of the Committee

Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics (ETHI)

Mandate of the Committee

The Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics studies and reports on matters referred to it by the House of Commons, or on topics the Committee itself chooses to examine under its mandate. It is a permanent committee established by the Standing Orders of the House of Commons. Bills, departmental activities and spending, and other matters related to the general subject matter of the Committee may be referred to it.

Under Standing Order 108(3)(h), the Committee’s mandate is to study matters related to reports of:

• the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
• the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
• the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying of Canada
• the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner pursuant to the Conflict of Interest Act.

The Committee considers the Estimates of:

• Office of the Information Commissioner
• Office of the Privacy Commissioner
• Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner
• Office of the Senate Ethics Officer
• Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying

Other Responsibilities under the Committee’s Mandate:

• Proposing, promoting, monitoring and assessing of initiatives which relate to access to information and privacy across all sectors of Canadian society and; to ethical standards relating to public office holders.
• This includes the review of and report on any federal legislation, regulation or Standing Order in these areas.

Committee Members

Bio of the Committee Members

Chair

Pat Kelly (Calgary Rocky Ridge)
Conservative
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament in 2015 for Calgary Rock Ridge (Alberta), re-elected in 2019 and 2021
• Currently also serves on the Liaison Committee as well as the Subcomitte on Agenda and Procedure for the ETHI.
• In the past, he’s served on multiple committees, including Finance, Public Accounts, OGGO, the Library of Parliament and the COVID-19 Pandemic committee.
• Before his election in 2015, Mr. Kelly was a mortgage broker in Calgary. He has graduated from the University of Calgary with a degree in Political Science.

1st VICE-CHAIR

Iqra Khalid (Mississauga–Erin Mills)
Liberal
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament in 2015 for Mississauga–Erin Mills (Ontario), re-elected in 2019 and 2021
• Currently also serves on the Committee for Scrutiny of Regulations as was all the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure for ETHI
• She’s on multiple Parliamentary Groups, including Canadian NATO, the Canadian Branch of the Commonwealth and the Canadian Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
• Before her election in 2015, she worked as a legal professional. She has a degree in criminology and professional writing from York University as well as a Juris Doctor degree from WMU-Cooley.
• Ms. Khalid was born in Punjab and immigrated in Canada in 1998

2nd VICE-CHAIR

René Villemure (Trois-Rivières)
Bloc Québécois
Member

• Elected as the Member for Parliament in 2021 for Trois-Rivières (Québec)
• Bloc Critic for Ethics, Privacy and Access to Information
• Also serves on the Subcomittee on Agenda and Procedure for ETHI
• He is an Executive Member of the Canadian Branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophie and sits on multiple Parliamentary Associations.
• Mr. Villemure is a well-known Ethician in Quebec, often appearing on Quebec news channels in the past for matters related to Ethics
• He has a PhD in philosophy from the Université de Sherbrooke.

 

James Bezan (Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman)
Conservative
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament in 2004 for Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, re-elected ever since
• Conservative Shadow Minister for Ethics
• Also serves as a Member on the Subcomittee on Agenda and Procedure of ETHI
• Previously served on many committees, including National Defence (Vice-Chair), Liaison, Environment and Sustainable Development (Chair) and Agriculture and Agri-Food (Chair)
• While the Conservatives were in power, he served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence (2013-2015)
• Prior to his election, Mr. Bezan worked in the livestock industry.

 

Damien Kurek (Battle River–Crowfoot)
Conservative
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament in 2019 for Battle River–Crowfoot (Alberta), re-elected in 2021
• Also served on the Public Safety and National Security committee, as well as the COVID-19 Pandemic committee during the 43rd Parliament
• Before his election, Mr. Kurek worked as a farmer and in the oil and gas sector.
• He has a degree in Political Science from the Trinity University and a diploma in biblical studies.

 

Ryan Williams (Bay of Quinte)
Conservative
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament for the first time in 2021 in Bay of Quinte
• Also serves as a Member on the Standing Committee on Science and Research
• Member of the Standing Committee on Health from December 9, 2021 to January 31, 2022
• Prior to his election, Mr. Williams sat on the Belleville City Council
• Has a degree in Business from the Western University and a degree in Hotel and Food Administration from the University of Guelph
• He is the President of Williams Hotels

 

Matthew Green (Hamilton Centre)
New Democratic Party
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament in 2019 for Hamilton Centre (Ontario), re-elected in 2021
• Also on the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure for ETHI
• Previously served on many committees, including Public Accounts, COVID-19 Pandemic and OGGO
• Before his election in 2019, he was the first Black Canadian to serve on the Hamilton City Council, from 2014 to 2018. He also worked as an Executive Director for the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion.
• Mr. Green has a degree in Political Science from Acadia University. He also attended McCaster University.

 

Parm Bains (Stevenston–Richmond East)
Liberal
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament for Stevenston–Richmond East (British Columbia) for the first time in 2021
• Also serves on the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates.
• Prior to his election, Mr. Bains was an instructor at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. He also worked as a media and public relations officer with the British Columbia provincial government
• He has attended the British Columbia Institute Of Technology as well as the Royal Roads University, where he got a Masters degree.

 

Greg Fergus (Québec—Hull—Alymer)
Liberal
Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister & to the President of the Treasury Board
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament for Hull—Alymer (Québec) in 2015, re-elected in 2019 and 2021.
• Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the President of the Treasury Board
• Former Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development.
• Also sits on the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs and multiple Parliamentary Associations.
• Also served on various committees in the past, including Public Accounts, COVID-19 Pandemic, OGGO and Finance.
• He obtained 2 Bachelor’s degrees (social science and international relations) from the University of Ottawa and Carleton University
• Worked for cabinet ministers Pierre Pettigrew and Jim Peterson

 

Lisa Hepfner (Hamilton Mountain)
Liberal
Member

• Elected as the Member of Parliament for Hamilton Mountain (Ontario) for the first time in 2021.
• Also sits on the Canadian Heritage committee.
• Member of various Parliamentary Associations, including Canadian NATO, Canada-United States and the Canadian Section of ParlAmericas.
• Prior to her election in 2021, she was a television news journalist for CHCH News.
• Ms. Hepfner has a Bachelor of Journalism from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelor of Arts form the University of Calgary and a master’s dree from McMaster University.

 

Ya’ara Saks (York Centre)
Liberal
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development

• Elected as the Member of Parliament for York Centre (Ontario) in a by-election in 2020, re-elected in 2021.
• Previously sat on the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development and the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development
• Before her election in 2020, Ms. Saks was a Principal Consultant at YLS Consulting as well as a blog writer. She also served as Director for the Trauma Practice for Healthy Communities.
• She has a degree in Middle East Studies and Political Science from McGill University and a Master’s degree in International Relations and Diplomacy from The Hebrew University.

Date modified:

2022-10-24