Another Liberal government appointment has current and former Hill-goers bristling, after longtime acting House clerk Marc Bosc was passed over for the permanent position, which instead went to his counterpart in the Senate this week.

A pair of former House clerks blasted the government’s decision to hold what it said was an open competition for the new House clerk, a position that has traditionally been filled by promoting the deputy or acting clerk, they said. They also joined a chorus of voices expressing surprise, disappointment, or outrage that Mr. Bosc, who has served as deputy clerk since 2005 and acting clerk since September 2014, was not deemed the most qualified candidate for the role.

The House voted 200-79 to approve Charles Robert, who has been serving as interim clerk of the Senate, as the next House clerk on Tuesday. The Liberals and NDP voted for the motion, while the Conservatives and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May (Saanich-Gulf islands, B.C.) voted against it.

It was the first time in recent history that a recorded vote on the clerk’s appointment has been held.

Neither former colleagues of Mr. Bosc nor a handful of current MPs could say why Mr. Bosc would not have been deemed the best candidate for the job, and several praised him for his capability and integrity in the acting and deputy clerk roles.

Several also offered praise for the winner of the competition, Mr. Robert, as an experienced officer of Parliament, though a few took issue with the idea that a longtime Senate officer would be deemed more qualified to guide the House than Mr. Bosc.

Mr. Robert did serve as an officer in the House for a time early in his career before moving over to the Senate in 1991.

“Personally, I can say I find it shocking that the government would turn to the Senate….that’s no reflection on Charles Robert,” said Robert Marleau, who served as clerk of the House for 13 years and is currently the City of Ottawa’s integrity commissioner.

“What’s wrong here is the nomination process,” he said in an interview.

“I just think that it’s time for the House to take control of its own servants.”

The Liberal government posted the job online in December, and allowed anyone with an interest to apply. Fifty-four people did, according to PCO spokesperson Paul Duchesne.

In the past, clerks—typically the deputy or acting clerk was promoted—were appointed and announced by the government without a competition, usually based upon recommendations from the outgoing clerk and the Speaker. The last clerk, Audrey O’Brien, was vetted by a House committee first, while Mr. Marleau’s name was put forward to the government of the day by the Speaker, upon consultation with opposing parties.

This time, the competition for the new clerk was decided by a four-person panel, including one from the Prime Minister’s Office, two from the Privy Council Office, and one from the House leader’s office, according to Sabrina Atwal, a spokesperson for House Leader Bardish Chagger (Waterloo, Ont.).

“This is the first time in almost 40 years that the government has acted unilaterally, and that is what is shocking in a modern House that should have more control on the appointment of its officers,” Mr. Marleau wrote to The Hill Times in an email. “It is a step backwards and a return to government control of the Table.”

He also criticized the government for creating a panel to hire the top official in the House of Commons that was not made up of people with experience working in the Chamber.

“Those people had no idea what the clerk does on a day-to-day basis, what challenges they face, the fine line that the clerk has got to walk from time to time, the role of the Board of Internal Economy.”

Ms. Atwal would not say who served on the selection committee, beyond providing the breakdown of where they came from. She also did not say whether Ms. Chagger, first elected in 2015, represented the House leader’s office on the committee.

Audrey O’Brien, who served as House clerk until Mr. Bosc took over on an acting basis in 2014, wrote in an emailed statement to The Hill Times that she had “no doubts” about the integrity and competence of Mr. Bosc, who served as her deputy for almost a decade.

“Professionally, I am bewildered by the decision on the succession and I am profoundly disappointed at the way in which it was handled. To decide on someone other than Marc Bosc is the prerogative of the House, of course, but the circumstances in this case are simply untenable,” she wrote.

Former House Speaker and Liberal MP Peter Milliken also said he was “shocked” that Ms. Bosc wasn’t appointed the House clerk, calling him competent and qualified.

Mr. Bosc, who declined to comment for this article, began his career in the House of Commons in 1986 as a procedural clerk, and has been a table officer in the House since 1994.

He received cheers and a standing ovation from MPs from all sides of the House on Tuesday afternoon as he looked on from a doorway beside the Speaker’s chair, and tributes from the Speaker and others. Though Ms. Chagger’s office said Mr. Bosc had the option of remaining in his deputy job, the sentimental farewells offered by House officials and MPs suggest that may not happen.

When asked why Mr. Bosc had not been nominated by the government, Ms. Chagger said week, “We have an open, transparent, and merit-based process, and people go through that process.”

“I’ve tabled a name that I am suggesting, and the [Procedure and House Affairs] Committee will be able to hear from the nominated clerk and do the good work that they do.”

The Liberal government has been criticized for the execution of a new selection process for governor-in-council appointments it launched in February 2016. Many have been left unfilled for lengthy periods of time, and the government took heat for an attempt to appoint former Ontario Liberal minister Madeleine Meilleur as the official languages commissioner. She eventually withdrew her name.

The government has filled 170 positions through its appointment process since it launched, and another 120 selection processes are currently underway, according to Mr. Duchesne.

Robert hopes to serve for ‘several Parliaments’

Ms. Chagger and Mr. Robert appeared before the Procedure and House Affairs Committee last week. Ms. Chagger, who had been invited to discuss changes to the standing orders, fielded several questions about the appointment from opposition members of the committee, as well as a complaint from Conservative MP Blake Richards (Banff-Airdrie, Alta.) that the appointment was being “rushed” through before the summer break.

Ms. Chagger told the committee that the leaders of other parties had been consulted on which criteria should be used in the selection process. She did not directly answer when asked whether other parties had been consulted on the selection of Mr. Robert.

When asked by The Hill Times why the nomination of Mr. Robert had been announced so soon before the summer break, Ms. Chagger said, “When the process came to a conclusion resulting in a name that I was comfortable nominating…I brought it forward, right away.”

“I didn’t put an end time to when the process would unfold,” she said.

During the committee meeting, Mr. Robert said the House clerk position was “the most senior position in my profession in this country.” He said he had applied for the job in February.

Mr. Robert said he anticipated serving as House clerk, if the House approved his nomination, for “at least several Parliaments.”

The Liberals on the Procedure and House Affairs Committee voted down a motion from Conservative MP Scott Reid (Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston, Ont.) to invite Mr. Marleau and Ms. O’Brien to speak “about the role, duties, and responsibilities” of the House clerk.

Speaking to The Hill Times afterwards, Liberal MP Arnold Chan, the deputy House leader, (Scarborough-Agincourt, Ont.) said the committee’s job was to examine the candidacy of Mr. Robert, not the role of the House clerk.

Mr. Chan said Mr. Robert was “an equally meritorious choice to act as the next clerk of the House,” to Mr. Bosc, though he also said he had no problem with Mr. Bosc’s service as clerk.

The committee didn’t meet again or issue a report on the matter before the appointment was approved in the House.

‘Good appointment’ or ‘terrible’ treatment?

Liberal MP Greg Fergus (Hull-Aylmer, Que.) said he has known Mr. Bosc since the former arrived in the House in 1988 to work as a parliamentary page.

“He’s an excellent, excellent table officer, a great representative of what he does, and he has served very capably as interim clerk,” he said.

“[The appointment was] a surprise to me, but I’m certain that the hiring committee must have had a reason.”

NDP MP Matthew Dubé (Beloeil-Chambly, Que.), his party’s deputy House leader, said Mr. Robert seemed to be qualified for the job, and while Mr. Bosc was also experienced in the role, “On the surface it looks like a good appointment.”

A pair of Conservative MPs aren’t happy with the appointment, however. David Tilson (Dufferin-Caledon, Ont.) said he was “shocked” Mr. Bosc was not appointed, adding, “It doesn’t make sense.”

Erin O’Toole (Durham, Ont.) echoed that sentiment, noting Mr. Bosc “literally wrote the book on procedure” used by the House, along with Ms. O’Brien. The House of Commons Procedure and Practice second edition, edited by the pair, is often just called “O’Brien and Bosc.”

“There’s no way any other candidate would have even close to the qualifications of Marc Bosc,” said Mr. O’Toole.

“To treat someone who has devoted almost his entire adult life to Parliament the way they have is terrible.”

He called on the government to reverse its decision. He has also filed an order-paper question seeking full details about the government’s selection process.

peter@hilltimes.com

@PJMazereeuw