How Do We Fix The Ethics Deficit?

How do we fix the ethics deficit? Preston Manning, Globe and Mail – Dec 3, 2007 Increasing numbers of Canadians believe that an "ethics deficit" exists in the political arena. Crudely put, they think that too many politicians and their friends are liars or crooks or both. Shawinigate, the sponsorship scandal, revelations and allegations surrounding cash payouts by Karlheinz Schreiber -- all tend to reinforce this perception. The breadth and depth of the ethics deficit in national politics contributes directly to the "democracy deficit" -- declining public confidence in political leaders, parties, candidates, elections and elected bodies such as Parliament. It also makes it increasingly difficult to recruit men and women of integrity and ability to run for public office. So what might be done to fix it? Political education: "Ethics" must become an integral part of the training and education of political participants, including volunteers, constituency and party executives, campaign mangers and candidates, elected representatives, cabinet ministers, and leaders. Since modern political parties are basically marketing mechanisms for fighting elections, and do very little development of their own human resources, training and education must largely be provided by others close to but not part of the party machinery. For example, two programs being developed by the Manning Centre for Building Democracy - a school of practical politics and an advanced level program in political management - seek to provide this service. Ten years ago, ethics would not have been an explicit part of the curriculum. Today post-Enron, post-sponsorship - it is a must. A stronger role for justice: In the early 1990s, it became popular to acknowledge and address the ethics deficit in politics by drafting new codes of conduct for politicians and civil servants and by appointing ethics commissioners or watchdogs to enforce them. While this approach may have some merit, it did nothing to prevent the sponsorship scandal or the ethical laxity that permitted it, and appears to make ethical considerations an addon to the regular business of politics and government rather than an integral part of that business.

A better approach is to rely much more heavily on making the federal Justice Department and the provincial attorneys-general the primary guardians of the ethics of governments and the political system. One premier, with whom I'm familiar, would periodically assemble his caucus and senior civil servants and lay down the rule: "Those who make the laws and those who administer the laws must keep the laws, for when we fail to do so we lose the moral authority to govern." To give weight to this imperative, he let it be known that he had charged the deputy attorney-general and several key members of his staff to randomly, but systematically, scrutinize all government contracts and transactions, and to report any appearance of conflict of interest or ethical misconduct to the attorney-general and himself. Maintaining the integrity of the government, the legislature and the provincial political machinery was not some add-on to the normal business of government in response to some particular instance of chicanery - it was to be an integral part of the administration of justice. Strengthening public ethics: One of the oldest maxims of democratic politics is that we generally get the type of government we deserve. Thus, only rarely will the ethical standards of a government or legislature exceed those of the population that elects them. If we are prepared to fleece our neighbours by cheating on our income taxes, it should not surprise us if some politician democratically elected to represent us is prepared to fleece us by misappropriating public funds. If we are prepared to use near truths, half truths and even lies to advance our personal or business interests, it should not surprise us if those we elect to represent us also use near truths, half truths and even lies to advance their political interests. Years ago, I conducted a poll before a municipal election asking voters a simple question: "Did you vote in the last municipal election?" It turned out that twice as many respondents answered "yes" as had actually voted. In other words, one out of two electors didn't tell the truth in response to this question. I would then argue with friends that we should not complain if half the people elected to city council turned out to be liars -- since they would simply be representing their constituents!

Raising our own ethical standards as citizens and voters is also an integral component of overcoming the ethics deficit in the political arena.