About the Public Registry

The Public Registry provides the public with information regarding the interests of and activities of senators. The Ethics and Conflict of Interest Code for Senators describes the interests and activities that must be disclosed to the Senate Ethics Officer and those that must be disclosed publicly.

These include activities they carry on outside their parliamentary duties, the source and nature (but not the value) of their income, the nature (but not the value) of their assets and liabilities, authorized contracts or other business arrangements with the Government of Canada or any federal agency or body, as well as Declarations of Private Interest, Statements of Sponsored Travel, Statements of Gifts or Other Benefits, and Statements of Material Change.

Not all the interests of senators are required to be disclosed under the Code. Properties used as residences, mortgages on such residences, household goods and personal effects are some examples of interests that will not be publicly disclosed.

Each year, senators must file with the SEO a Confidential Disclosure Statement outlining their private interests and those of their spouse or partner along with a Statement of Compliance. This process is referred to as the annual disclosure process.  More information on this process is available here.

As of June 18, 2021, senators must file their annual Confidential Disclosure Statements and their Statements of Compliance within 30 days of the anniversary of their summons to the Senate.

The SEO reviews these statements and posts public disclosure summaries in the Public Registry as soon as the review of each statement is completed. In addition, any Statements of Sponsored Travel, Gifts or Other Benefits, Material Change and Declarations of Private Interest received by the SEO between annual filings are placed in the Public Registry, after review, according to the annual disclosure cycle within which they are received.

The number of senators whose names appear under a fiscal year may not be equal to the number of seats in the Senate due to empty seats, the appointment of new senators, the dates of appointment and the mandated removal of statements from the Public Registry after a senator ceases to be a senator.

The public disclosure summaries of individual senators and other documents are in the preferred language of each senator.

Documents prior to 2012-13

As of October 1, 2012, the Code requires that any public disclosure summaries and statements available for public inspection be made available online. The public disclosure documents pertaining to fiscal years prior to 2012-2013 are available in printed form at the Office of the Senate Ethics Officer (here).

Removal of Public Disclosure Files from the Public Registry

The public disclosure file of each senator is removed from the Public Registry when the senator ceases to be a senator. The public disclosure summaries and statements of a former senator are available, on request, from the Office for one year after the senator ceases to be a senator, after which time these documents are transferred to the Senate archives (im-gi@sen.parl.gc.ca).