Mario Dion


Mario Dion is a Canadian public servant who currently serves as Canada's Ethics Commissioner. He was appointed on January 9, 2018, succeeding Mary Dawson, and will serve a seven-year term.

Early life and education

Dion was born in Montreal. In 1979, Dion received a law degree from the University of Ottawa.

Career

Dion began his legal career as a legal advisor in the Ministry of the Solicitor General in 1980. In 1988, he was appointed an Assistant Deputy Minister at Corrections Canada. He moved on to serve in the Department of Justice, in an Assistant Deputy Minister, then Associate Deputy Minister position. Dion also served in the Privy Council Office as Deputy Clerk and Counsel from 1996 to 1997, and at the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs in 2003. Dion served as chair of the National Parole Board from 2006 to 2009, Commissioner of Public Sector Integrity from 2011 to 2014, and Chair of the Immigration and Refugee Board from 2015 to 2018.

Public Sector Integrity Commissioner

In 2014, Michael Ferguson, Canada's former auditor general, publicly rebuked Dion's performance as the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada, an office that is supposed to protect public servants who blow the whistle on wrongdoing within the federal government. Dion was appointed commissioner by the Harper Government after the previous commissioner resigned amid complaints about the office.

Ethics Commissioner

On December 11, 2017, Bardish Chagger, the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, announced the nomination of Dion as Ethics Commissioner, succeeding Mary Dawson. He assumed the role on January 9, 2018. Dion's rapid last-minute appointment by the Liberal Party was criticized for its secrecy.
As Commissioner, Dion is responsible for administering the Conflict of Interest Act and the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons.

SNC-Lavalin affair

On February 11, 2019, Dion's office announced that it would investigate allegations of political interference and obstruction of justice by personnel in the Prime Minister's Office, who allegedly attempted to pressure Jody Wilson-Raybould, the then Attorney General, to intervene in an ongoing criminal prosecution case against construction firm SNC-Lavalin by granting them a deferred prosecution agreement.
In a letter to opposition NDP MPs Charlie Angus and Nathan Cullen, Dion stated that he believed section 9 of the Conflict of Interest Act, which he stated "prohibits a public office holder from seeking to influence a decision of another person so as to improperly further another person’s private interests," had been breached, granting him the authority to investigate the matter.

Leave of absence

On March 12, 2019, Dion announced that he will take a "prolonged" absence from his role as the government's conflict of interest watchdog, due to "medical reasons." His office's work continued in his absence, and he returned to work in April 2019.