Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced the appointment of three new Senators who were nominated by the Governor-General in 2016 through an Independent Advisory Board.
three new appointments, made with Advising the Prime Minister are Dr. Sharon Buley, former President of the Ontario Pediatricians Alliance (PAO), Andrew Cardozo, President of the Pearson Center for Progressive Policy (PCPP), a think tank, and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). Rear Admiral Rebecca Patterson.
Sixty-six senators have been appointed on the advice of Trudeau, who has been prime minister since 2015. Three new appointees will reduce the vacancies in the Senate to a total of 12.
The independent advisory committee that recommended the new senators delegation To “provide non-binding, merit-based recommendations” to the Prime Minister for election to the Senate. According to the government website, the board is made up of “three permanent members of Congress and two members from each state or territory whose vacancies are filled.”
Trudeau made the senator selection process public in 2016 and created an advisory board. All public Senate election applications are reviewed and scrutinized by the Board. The Council advises the Prime Minister, who has the final say on appointments.
A news release announcing the appointment described Berry as “the first woman of color” to serve as chairman of the PAO. She is also a member of the Health Policy Committee of the Ontario Medical Association.
Cardozo was previously a member of the Canadian Radio, Television and Telecommunications Commission, which regulates broadcasting throughout the country. Cardozo also taught journalism at Carleton University in Ottawa.
Patterson was one of the CAF’s top soldiers involved in managing widespread sexual assault allegations in the military. She has been enlisted in the military since 1989 and currently she serves as Director of the CAF’s Department of Cultural Change and Chief Professional Conduct and Culture.
Independent Advisory Board
Current, 3 permanent Federal members of the Advisory Board are Huguette Labelle, Melissa Blake, and François Rolland.
Chairing the Board, LaBelle is the former Governor and Chancellor of the University of Ottawa. She currently sits on a number of other boards, one of which she chairs, the International Anti-Corruption Council (IACC).
of IACCdescribes itself as “a forum for bringing together heads of state, civil society, business leaders and investigative journalists from around the world to end corruption” and hosts annual global workshops and conferences.
The next conference, scheduled for early December in Washington, DC, will include Secretary of State Anthony Brinken, as well as many senior executives from the World Bank Group and other institutions as speakers.
Rolland served as President of the High Court of Quebec from 2004 to 2015, served on the Senate Board, and currently serves on the Ethics Commission of Barreau du Québec, Quebec’s legal advocacy group.
Blake served as Mayor of Wood Buffalo, Alberta from 2004 to 2017 and was appointed to the Advisory Board after retirement.
Canadian Press contributed to this report.
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