OTTAWA – A subcommittee of Members of Parliament will be embarking on a "thorough review" of the current sexual harassment code of conduct for MPs.
On Thursday, the MPs on the Procedure and House Affairs Committee unanimously passed the motion brought by Deputy Government Whip Filomena Tassi.
According to a copy of the motion, the "thorough review" will be conducted by a seven-member subcommittee of the House affairs committee.
"The time is right and the time is now that we have a renewed focus on this code," Tassi told the committee in moving the motion, citing the rapid pace of cases being brought to light over recent months.
The subcommittee will have four Liberal members, two Conservative members, and one New Democrat.
The subcommittee will to be able to call witnesses, obtain records and other evidence and documents to complete its review, including accessing previous confidential discussions held by the House affairs committee on reviewing the code.
The code was first drafted by the House affairs committee in 2015. The code covers MP-to-MP instances of harassment and spells out how to report, the process for mediation, privacy protections, and the involvement of the House of Commons’ Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO).
The code was last reviewed, and , by the committee of MPs in Oct. 2017.
