So that’s it, then? A brief statement from the party leader and two Members of Parliament are permanently consigned to the never-never land of independent status, their careers in tatters? Nothing to see here, folks. Move right along.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau evidently thinks he can turn the page on the messy saga of MPs Massimo Pacetti and Scott Andrews, who were bounced from his party’s caucus last November amid allegations of “serious personal misconduct.” After announcing on Thursday that an internal inquiry into the matter is over and the pair won’t run again for the Liberals, Trudeau added definitively: “I consider this matter closed.”

Not so fast. It may be convenient for the party and even the MPs themselves to drive on by, but there’s more at stake for voters. Two elected representatives have been effectively vaporized, while questions remain unanswered about what actually happened between them and the female MPs who accused them of sexual impropriety.

Even more important, an opportunity is being missed to learn from their fate and make sure Parliament doesn’t see a repeat of that kind of behaviour. Far from ducking such tough issues, our national politicians should set an example in dealing with – and learning from – sexual and workplace harassment.

For Pacetti and Andrews, it is indeed the end of the line. Pacetti, an MP from Montreal, was accused by an anonymous NDP MP of having sex with her without “explicit consent.” He won’t run again.

Andrews, the MP for Avalon in Newfoundland, was reportedly accused by another unnamed female MP of following her home, pushing her against a wall, and calling her a “c---tease” when she refused his advances. He has given up attempts to be reinstated by the Liberals, and says he hasn’t decided whether to run again.

All we know about the allegations against the two MPs comes from news reports, based mostly on unnamed sources. Trudeau asked human rights lawyer Cynthia Petersen to look into the matter, but won’t make public her report or any details from it. Meanwhile, CTV News reported this week that the party had received complaints about the MPs from more women.

What’s the truth? Who knows? Voters are being asked to accept the outcome on the word of the party leader and the decision of the MPs to go along with Petersen’s report. Trudeau says he wants to respect confidentiality, but respecting voters is just as important.

At the same time, he and other party leaders are missing a chance to draw lessons from this episode. To his credit, Trudeau took quick action when the allegations were brought against his MPs. He would do better now to spell out the party’s biggest takeaways so the public – and Parliament – can move forward.

There’s a lot of blame to go around. A multi-party committee has been trying to come up with a code of conduct for MPs, but has run into the sand. As long as our elected representatives can’t even figure out how to police their own behaviour, they will continue to squander our respect.

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