Abstract

Why are Canadians concerned about the ethical conduct of government officials in the 1990s? Does patronage still have a legitimate role in politics? What do we mean by conflict of interest? Can a government be both effective and clean? This book probes these questions of patronage, government secrecy, political party financing, conflict of interest, and the private lives of public officials by examining the impact of public officials' behaviour on the quality of Canadian democracy.To compare government ethics in different communities, Langford and Tupper commissioned essays on the federal and provincial experience in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. There are also unique perspectives on aboriginal government communities, cities, and small towns. This book examines the meaning of public sector ethics and offers an assessment of several reform proposals. It provides a framework for assessing government ethics in the turbulent politics of the 1990s.