Strengthening public confidence: A supervisory committee and new associate commissioners for UPAC

QUÉBEC CITY, June 14, 2018 – Martin Coiteux, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, Minister of Public Security and Minister responsible for the Montréal region, would like to highlight the recent actions taken to strengthen public confidence in the Permanent Anti-Corruption Unit (UPAC).

Establishment of the supervisory committee

As part of Bill 107, the government proposed the establishment of a UPAC supervisory committee composed of members appointed by two-thirds of the National Assembly. Today, the MNAs ratified the appointment of the following members:

• Claude Corbo, O. Q., PH.D, FRSC, as committee chair;
• Anne-Marie Boisvert, LLB, LLM, as committee member;
• Diane Derome, ADM.A, A.S.C, as committee member.

The term of office is seven years for the chair of the committee and five years for the other members. A member cannot be re-appointed, consecutively or otherwise, for any reason whatsoever.

It should be recalled that the UPAC supervisory committee will have the mandate to provide its views on:

• the management of penal and criminal investigations carried out within UPAC;
• the actions taken with respect to received denunciations, with the exception of denunciations that are the subject of an investigation or judicial proceeding;
• the annual management report of the Anti-Corruption Commissioner;
• any other question relating to the activities of UPAC.

Appointment of the associate commissioners

Yesterday, the Cabinet of Québec appointed two associate commissioners to UPAC. As a result:

• Frédéric Gaudreau was appointed Associate Commissioner for Investigations to the Anti-Corruption Commissioner, and will start on June 26, 2018. Gaudreau is currently the Director of Partnership Investigations and Intelligence at the Autorité des marchés financiers.
• Eric René has been appointed Associate Commissioner for Audits to the Anti-Corruption Commissioner, and will also start June 26, 2018. Mr. René is currently acting as Senior Director of Investigations at the Autorité des marchés financiers.

Quote:

As Minister of Public Security, my role is to make sure that the institutions under my responsibility are working well and are not harming ongoing investigations. These actions will strengthen public confidence in UPAC while ensuring greater accountability and efficiency within the organization. I would like to highlight the effective collaboration of the MNAs in the establishment of a committee to oversee the activities of UPAC before the end of this parliamentary session. This is a welcome initiative for many.

– Martin Coiteux, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, Minister of Public Security and Minister responsible for the Montréal region

Key points:

• On February 14, the National Assembly passed Bill 107. It aims to increase the competence and independence of the Anti-Corruption Commissioner and the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes (BEI). It also aims to increase the power of the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) in granting certain benefits to collaborating witnesses.
• The government has thus strengthened the autonomy and independence of the Permanent Anti-Corruption Unit (UPAC) while ensuring better accountability, particularly through:
  • the establishment of a police force specializing in the fight against corruption, subject to the Police Act;
  • the amendment of the Anti-Corruption Commissioner appointment process, which will now be, as recommended by the Commission d’enquête sur l’octroi et la gestion des contrats publics dans l’industrie de la construction (CEIC), similar to that of the DPCP;
  • the establishment of a UPAC supervisory committee.
• Candidates for the position of member of the Supervisory Committee are first chosen from a list of persons who have been declared eligible to be appointed to the Committee by the selection committee formed for that purpose by the Minister. The selection committee is composed of the Deputy Minister of Public Security or his representative, a lawyer recommended by the bâtonnier du Québec and an associate or full professor at a Québec university in a field relevant to the Committee’s mandate.
• The Government shall appoint associate commissioners for audits, on the recommendation of the Minister, from among those who have been declared fit to exercise the office by a selection committee established by the Minister, composed of the Commissioner, the Deputy Minister of Public Safety and a certified professional accountant recommended by the Ordre des comptables professionnels agréés du Québec.
• The Government shall also appoint an associate commissioner for investigations, on the recommendation of the Minister, from among those persons who have been declared fit to exercise the office by a selection committee formed by the Minister, composed of the Commissioner, the Deputy Minister of Public Safety and a director of a police force recommended by the Board of Directors of the Association des directeurs de police du Québec.