Maintaining good relations with Heritage Minister James Moore and his staff will be a key requirement for heads of the boards of Canada’s cultural institutions, iPolitics has learned.
The Conservative government sparked criticism in April when it listed the ability to maintain an “effective relationship” with the heritage minister and his staff as key requirements for the next chairman of the board of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
Recently, however, two other key job postings have included the same clause. It is included in a posting Saturday for a new chairman of the board of trustees of the National Gallery to replace Michael Audain of Vancouver who is stepping down in July for personal reasons. It is also one of the requirements in a posting that closed Friday for a new commissioner and chairperson of the National Battlefields Commission.
James Maunder, director of communications to Moore, said the clause is now a feature of all postings for heritage department governor in council appointments.
“It goes without saying that any candidate should be able to maintain partnerships with the minister, the deputy minister and the Gallery’s key stakeholders and partners,” said James Maunder, director of communications to Moore. “That is why you see the clause in all of the department’s postings for future appointments.”
The chairpersons of the National Gallery and the National Battlefields Commission serve “at pleasure” which means they can be replaced by a government at any time.
The clause was not in the 2006 posting for a CBC chairman, in January’s posting for a chairperson for the CRTC or a March posting for a chairperson of the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority.
However, a similar clause did appear in the November 2008 notice of vacancy for the National Gallery chairman’s position and in late June 2011 for the chairman of the Canadian Museum of Civilization. A posting in March for a new chairperson for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation also contained a similar clause.
Opposition critics say they are concerned making maintaining “effective relationships” with the heritage minister and staff in the minister’s office a job requirement could undermine the independence of government institutions.
NDP Heritage Critic Pierre Nantel said museums should be independent and it is “troubling” the government has no qualms about including the clause in the job vacancy notices.
“It is quite amazing to read it in black and white. We all guessed that they were asking for it, but they’re not even afraid of writing it in black and white.”
Nantel said the clause is in keeping with the Conservative government’s style.
“They don’t want any opposition, they don’t want any criticism.”
Nantel says he is also concerned the clause in the job description could be used to pressure chairpersons to agree to “political ideology” based initiatives from the minister’s office.
Liberal Scott Simms says he would like to know what Moore meant by an “effective relationship” and why the wording of the job notices has changed.
“To me, that raises some flags,” said Simms, adding he doesn’t see why it is necessary to change the wording of the job vacancy notices.
Inserting a political office into the guidelines risks politicizing the positions, said Simms. “A certain level of independence has to be exercised by those appointments in order for them to do that job.”
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May said appointments should to be based on objective criteria and appointees should be arms length from the people who appoint them.
“The problem with it is if it were to creep through all of the aspects of governance and affect all of the people appointed who were appointed for their expertise and for their knowledge and for their skills and for particularly the notion of being arms length. If you already know that you get along well with the minister and his staff, there’s something that becomes an entrenched coziness which would be very unhealthy.”
Reached on a trip to England, Michael Audain would not comment on the wording of the notice for his successor except to say that the chairman of the National Gallery’s board of trustees largely reflects the views of the board. “I think it’s not just a matter of the chair, the chair represents the board. So it’s really a matter of the relationship between the board and the minister.”
Audain said he is leaving the National Gallery’s board almost a year before the end of his mandate because he will turn 75 this summer – not because of any disagreement with the government.
“I just need more time for other projects that I want to pursue in the cultural area,” he explained. “I have really enjoyed my time on the board and feel that it is time that I passed the chairman’s gavel on, so to speak, to someone else.”
Original Article
Source: ipolitics
Author: Elizabeth Thompson
The Conservative government sparked criticism in April when it listed the ability to maintain an “effective relationship” with the heritage minister and his staff as key requirements for the next chairman of the board of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
Recently, however, two other key job postings have included the same clause. It is included in a posting Saturday for a new chairman of the board of trustees of the National Gallery to replace Michael Audain of Vancouver who is stepping down in July for personal reasons. It is also one of the requirements in a posting that closed Friday for a new commissioner and chairperson of the National Battlefields Commission.
James Maunder, director of communications to Moore, said the clause is now a feature of all postings for heritage department governor in council appointments.
“It goes without saying that any candidate should be able to maintain partnerships with the minister, the deputy minister and the Gallery’s key stakeholders and partners,” said James Maunder, director of communications to Moore. “That is why you see the clause in all of the department’s postings for future appointments.”
The chairpersons of the National Gallery and the National Battlefields Commission serve “at pleasure” which means they can be replaced by a government at any time.
The clause was not in the 2006 posting for a CBC chairman, in January’s posting for a chairperson for the CRTC or a March posting for a chairperson of the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority.
However, a similar clause did appear in the November 2008 notice of vacancy for the National Gallery chairman’s position and in late June 2011 for the chairman of the Canadian Museum of Civilization. A posting in March for a new chairperson for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation also contained a similar clause.
Opposition critics say they are concerned making maintaining “effective relationships” with the heritage minister and staff in the minister’s office a job requirement could undermine the independence of government institutions.
NDP Heritage Critic Pierre Nantel said museums should be independent and it is “troubling” the government has no qualms about including the clause in the job vacancy notices.
“It is quite amazing to read it in black and white. We all guessed that they were asking for it, but they’re not even afraid of writing it in black and white.”
Nantel said the clause is in keeping with the Conservative government’s style.
“They don’t want any opposition, they don’t want any criticism.”
Nantel says he is also concerned the clause in the job description could be used to pressure chairpersons to agree to “political ideology” based initiatives from the minister’s office.
Liberal Scott Simms says he would like to know what Moore meant by an “effective relationship” and why the wording of the job notices has changed.
“To me, that raises some flags,” said Simms, adding he doesn’t see why it is necessary to change the wording of the job vacancy notices.
Inserting a political office into the guidelines risks politicizing the positions, said Simms. “A certain level of independence has to be exercised by those appointments in order for them to do that job.”
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May said appointments should to be based on objective criteria and appointees should be arms length from the people who appoint them.
“The problem with it is if it were to creep through all of the aspects of governance and affect all of the people appointed who were appointed for their expertise and for their knowledge and for their skills and for particularly the notion of being arms length. If you already know that you get along well with the minister and his staff, there’s something that becomes an entrenched coziness which would be very unhealthy.”
Reached on a trip to England, Michael Audain would not comment on the wording of the notice for his successor except to say that the chairman of the National Gallery’s board of trustees largely reflects the views of the board. “I think it’s not just a matter of the chair, the chair represents the board. So it’s really a matter of the relationship between the board and the minister.”
Audain said he is leaving the National Gallery’s board almost a year before the end of his mandate because he will turn 75 this summer – not because of any disagreement with the government.
“I just need more time for other projects that I want to pursue in the cultural area,” he explained. “I have really enjoyed my time on the board and feel that it is time that I passed the chairman’s gavel on, so to speak, to someone else.”
Original Article
Source: ipolitics
Author: Elizabeth Thompson
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