Bill 85

Bill 852000

An Act to restore the tradition

of legislative accountability

for the Premier and Cabinet

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

1.The Executive Council Act is amended by adding the following section:

Deductions for non-attendance

3.1 (1)If, at the end of a session of the Legislature, a Minister of the Crown has failed to attend 60 per cent of the oral question periods held during the session, $100 shall be deducted from the minister's salary for each occasion by which his or her attendance fell short of 60 per cent.

Deemed presence

(2)For the purpose of subsection (1), a minister shall be deemed to be present for an oral question period if,

(a)the minister is absent from the oral question period because the minister is too ill to attend, as shown in the record of attendance under subsection (4); or

(b)the minister is absent from the oral question period for no more than 20 minutes.

Ministers for part of a session

(3)If a person was not a Minister during all of a session of the Legislature, subsection (1) applies with necessary modifications to the part of the session when the person was a Minister.

Record of attendance

(4)Within five days after the end of a session of the Legislature, each minister shall give the Clerk of the Assembly a signed record of attendance, listing each occasion during that session on which there was an oral question period, and stating with respect to each,

(a)whether the minister was a minister on that occasion;

(b)whether the minister attended oral question period on that occasion, being absent for no more than 20 minutes of the oral question period; and

(c)whether the minister was absent from oral question period on that occasion because the minister was too ill to attend.

Records copied and tabled

(5)The Clerk of the Assembly shall give a copy of each minister's record of attendance under subsection (4) to the Clerk of the Executive Council, and shall table the records at the beginning of the next session of the Legislature.

Deductions from salary

(6)The amount calculated under subsection (1) shall be deducted from the salary payment to be made to the minister within one month of the end of the session to which the calculation relates.

Commencement

2.This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short title

3.The short title of this Act is the Premier and Cabinet Accountability Act, 2000.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Bill adds a new section 3.1 to the Executive Council Act. Under the new section, if, at the end of a session of the Legislature, a Minister of the Crown, including the Premier, has not attended 60 per cent of the oral question periods held during the session, $100 must be deducted from the minister's salary for each occasion by which his or her attendance fell short of 60 per cent.