Fox Faces Ethics Scrutiny Over Hiring

0:00It's April 13th. From your city to your ears, this is Calgary News Today, powered by AI. I'm Cory with the story. A top Canadian public servant, Kristian Fox, now Deputy Minister of National Defense got called out for breaking conflict of interest rules last week. Back in 2023, while heading immigration, refugees, and citizenship Canada, she pushed for an unqualified acquaintance to land a government job according to the Ethics Commissioner. Monday, Fox faced the Parliamentary Committee and dodged chances to say sorry. Instead, she stressed her genuine push for workplace diversity, saying she'd reflect on the report but stood by her actions amid systemic barriers. Opposition members grilled her heart, asking if she regretted the move or saw it as a mistake. They called it unfair, especially with thousands of qualified public servants facing layoffs soon, putting underqualified hires in a bad light. Fox downplayed her ties to the hire.

1:01A gym manager she knew from university, basketball, and family links, claiming he brought needed client service. Skills Critics point out Ethics rules hid regular employees with firings but spare senior officials like her. All this surfaced during a hearing on shoddy military housing from last fall's auditor general report lacking basics like clean water. As Ethics loopholes get reviewed, Fox's case spotlights bigger accountability gaps in government.