Conservative MP who wants to skip pay raise takes request to court

OTTAWA — Conservative MP Mike Dawson is challenging the annual salary increase given to members of Parliament, despite the House of Commons asserting his legal obligation to accept the compensation. The Miramichi-Grand Lake, N.B., lawmaker, who previously criticized the pay raise in February, submitted a request for judicial review in Federal Court in June to contest the nearly $8,000 hike.

Dawson's affidavit states that he requested the exemption because he believes elected officials should exemplify fiscal prudence and solidarity with ordinary Canadians experiencing unsustainable cost-of-living increases. "I continue to hold that belief," he affirmed. Dawson has received over 20,000 messages of support from Canadians since February, many of which were included in the affidavit's appendix.

According to the House of Commons Clerk Eric Janse, who submitted an affidavit in Federal Court, all MPs must receive the salary amounts stipulated in legislation, and deviation would be illegal and impractical. Janse stated that Dawson's salary, including annual adjustments, must be paid under the Parliament of Canada Act. In an email to The Canadian Press, Olivier Duhaime, a spokesperson for the Office of the Speaker of the House of Commons, stated that he anticipates Dawson to submit a memorandum of fact and law by the end of August or early September, with the House expected to respond within 20 days, outlining its position.

The House will not comment further or grant interviews during the court proceedings. Dawson's attorney, Robert Blakely, told The Canadian Press that a hearing is expected in late December. Blakely emphasized that this is the first time the issue of MP pay raises has reached court. He noted that Dawson has been donating his salary increase to charity but would prefer to decline it.

Blakely stated that the Act provides a mechanism for calculating the increase but does not prevent an MP like Dawson from declining it. "Our position is that what the Act does is it provides a mechanism for calculating what the increase would be. There's nothing that says that an MP like Mr. Dawson can't say, 'I don't want it'," he said.