Victoria, BC – BC Ombudsperson Jay Chalke is urging the provincial government to take legislative action following two recent reports out of Vancouver that underscore the limitations of BC’s optional approach to municipal integrity oversight. In a letter to Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs Ravi Kahlon, sent on March 26, 2025, Chalke calls on the province to introduce legislation that would ensure independent and enforceable ethics and integrity oversight of local officials.
“Two recent reports from Vancouver highlight the pressing need for this legislation,” said Chalke. “The findings demonstrate the serious risks of relying solely on local oversight. Without a provincial framework, local ethics and integrity bodies are only established by local by-law and thus lack the protection needed to operate independently and effectively. As a result, public accountability suffers.”
The first report, issued on February 21, 2025 by Vancouver Park Board Integrity Commissioner Lisa Southern, found that six of seven Park Board commissioners breached their open meeting obligations. However, because those same commissioners hold authority over disciplinary measures, no sanctions could be imposed—exposing a critical flaw in BC’s current system. “Because, as the Integrity Commissioner found, so many commissioners breached their obligations, they are effectively immune from any consequences that would otherwise be recommended,” said Chalke. “This creates an absurd, and troubling, result.”
Further, public comments attributed to members of the ABC Vancouver party suggest an intent to continue caucusing privately, despite the Integrity Commissioner’s conclusions that this practice violates provincial open meeting laws.
The second report, a March 11, 2025 review of Vancouver’s Integrity Commissioner role by expert municipal lawyer and former Surrey Ethics Commissioner Reece Harding, raises further concerns. Harding’s report points to BC’s lack of provincial legislation on municipal codes of conduct, in contrast to provinces like Ontario, Manitoba, and New Brunswick, where standards are mandatory. He notes that oversight bodies created by municipal by-law—such as integrity commissioners—can be weakened or overridden by local councils unless protected by a legislative framework.
“As Harding and a recent Union of British Columbia Municipalities report have pointed out, BC is now an outlier in Canada because codes of conduct for local elected officials remain entirely optional,” said Chalke. “The lack of enforceable provincial standards opens the door to political interference, erodes public trust and puts the credibility of local oversight at risk.”
This is not the first time the Ombudsperson has raised concerns about ethics and integrity oversight in BC’s local governments. Chalke has been calling for legislative action on this issue since 2022, most recently writing to the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs in November 2024.
Chalke’s latest letter to Minister Kahlon points to these two Vancouver reports as reinforcing the importance of the concerns he has raised previously, noting that while the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs has acknowledged the issue, meaningful legislative action has yet to be taken.
“The absence of enforceable integrity mechanisms erodes confidence in our local government democratic institutions,” said Chalke. “British Columbians deserve local governments that are transparent, accountable, and governed by clear ethical standards.”
The Ombudsperson’s full letter to the Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs is available for download.