Reference
Glossary
Plain-language definitions of the Canadian parliamentary accountability terms used throughout this site. Each entry links to the official source and to the page where the concept shows up in our data.
- Conflict of interest(COI)
- A situation where a representative's private interest could improperly influence a public decision they have a duty to make. Read full entry
- Financial disclosure(Public disclosure summary, Asset declaration)
- A periodic filing in which a representative reports assets, liabilities, income sources, and outside activities to an ethics regulator. Read full entry
- Sponsored travel
- Travel for a parliamentarian paid for by someone other than the member, the Crown or a parliamentary association, which must be disclosed above a set threshold. Read full entry
- Federal lobbying registry(Registry of Lobbyists)
- A public list of every paid lobbyist communicating with a federal public office holder, who they work for, and which subjects they raised. Read full entry
- Royal assent
- The final stage of the legislative process at which a bill, having passed both chambers in identical form, becomes an Act of Parliament. Read full entry
- Third reading
- The final debate and vote on a bill in a legislative chamber, after committee study, before it goes to the other house or to royal assent. Read full entry
- Private member's bill(PMB)
- A public bill introduced in the House of Commons by a member who is not a cabinet minister. Read full entry
- Recorded division(Recorded vote)
- A vote in a legislative chamber in which each member's individual position is recorded by name in the official record. Read full entry
- Party whip
- The member responsible for ensuring their caucus attends votes and votes with the party where the party has taken a position. Read full entry
- Caucus
- The group of legislators belonging to one party who meet privately to set strategy, allocate roles and coordinate how they will vote. Read full entry
- Riding(Electoral district, Constituency)
- A defined geographic area that elects one member to a legislature — federally, one of the 343 electoral districts that return a member to the House of Commons. Read full entry
- Integrity Score(Integrity Rank)
- Integrity Index Canada's 0–100 composite score, shown as a letter grade, summarising a representative's record across weighted transparency factors drawn from official sources. Read full entry
- Ethics Commissioner(Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, CIEC)
- The independent officer of Parliament who administers the federal Conflict of Interest Act and the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons. Read full entry
- Blind trust
- An arrangement under which a representative's controlled assets are managed by an independent trustee who does not take instruction from, or report holdings to, the representative. Read full entry
- Parliamentary committee
- A small group of legislators that studies bills and subjects in detail, hears witnesses, and reports findings and amendments back to the full chamber. Read full entry