Former SC Justice, Binnie, Appointed as Special Arbitrator for Senate

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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Former Supreme Court justice, Ian Binnie, has been appointed as the special arbitrator who will be responsible to hear all complaints regarding any senators asked to reimburse expenses following a soon-to-be-released audit by the federal auditor general. Binnie served on the Supreme Court of Canada from 1998 to 2011.

According to the official announcement by the Senate committee on internal economy on Tuesday, it appointed Binnie to resolve disputes from senators who might challenge the findings from Auditor General Michael Ferguson’s office. In a statement issued by Senate speaker Leo Housakos, chairman of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration (CIBA), “the appointment of an independent arbitrator ensures that questions of reimbursement will be dealt with in a timely and fair fashion.” It was mentioned that “all decisions by the special arbitrator and CIBA will be made public, in line with our commitment to transparency and accountability.”

Binnie will be responsible to do a fair evaluation of each party’s claim, including both senators and the internal economy committee, on a case-by-case basis. Thereafter, Binnie’s decision will be binding and the committee will then be responsible to enforce it. Housakos is expected to receive the report from the auditor general in the first week of June. He has promised to make the report public soon after receiving it. Sources claim that Ferguson might even refer some cases to the RCMP.