Should provincial government Ministers be protected from liability when they perform acts which are grossly incompetent or grossly negligent?

The NDP are proposing to put a clause into a wide variety of bills which will protect Ministers of the Crown from liability under a wide variety of circumstances.

The clause (106(1) in Bill 21: The Public Health Act reads as follows:

106(1) No action or proceeding may be brought against the minister, the chief public health officer, a director, a medical officer, an inspector, a health officer, a public health nurse or any other person acting under the authority of this Act, the regulations or a municipal by-law for anything done or not done, or for any neglect, a) in the performance or intended performance of a duty under this Act, the regulations or a municipal by-law; b) in the exercise of a power under this Act, the regulations or a municipal-by-law; unless the person was acting in bad faith.

This clause protects the minister from liability even in the case of gross incompetence or gross neglect provided the minister was not acting in bad faith.

This clause provides rather extraordinary protection to the minister. Is this justified? Is this reasonable? What is your view? You can reach me at jgerrard@leg.gov.mb.ca or you can come and present at committee stage on this bill. To present on this bill, you need to call the office of the clerk of the legislature at 204-945-3636. The Bill will be discussed at the Standing Committee on Social and Economic Development which meets Wednesday May 17, 2006 at 6:00 p.m. in room 255 of the Manitoba Legislature.