Library of Parliament Publication on Officers of Parliament

The Library of Parliament has updated a research publication that describes the Appointment of Officers of Parliament: 

"Officers of Parliament are responsible directly to Parliament rather than to the government or a federal minister. This emphasizes their independence from the government of the day. They carry out duties assigned by statute and report to one or both chambers of Parliament."

"There are eight officers of Parliament: 1) the Auditor General; 2) the Chief Electoral Officer; 3) the Commissioner of Official Languages; 4) the Information Commissioner; 5) the Privacy Commissioner; 6) the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner; 7) the Commissioner of Lobbying; and 8) the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner.."

"Federally, there is no statutory definition of what constitutes a parliamentary officer; however, the role and function of these officers should not be confused with those of other positions such as the Clerk of either house, the Sergeant-at-Arms, the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel or the Parliamentary Librarian. The latter officials assist Parliament in procedural and administrative matters, whereas officers of Parliament support Parliament in its accountability and scrutiny functions and in carrying out other tasks (...)"

"This document looks at the eight parliamentary officer positions listed above."