Manitoba’s ombudsman has exonerated the former mayor of East St. Paul in a revised report about a conflict of interest complaint against the current mayor of the Winnipeg-area municipality.
The report takes a further look at a Rural Municipality of East St. Paul council meeting on Feb. 8, 2022, when then-councillor Carla Devlin — now the mayor of East St. Paul — took part in a vote about refunding $210,125 worth of fees to a developer that used a Devlin-owned company as a contractor.
In an original report completed in December 2024, the ombudsman concluded Devlin had a personal interest in the vote because she had an indirect pecuniary interest, as well as a personal relationship with the developer.
That report found Shelley Hart, who was East St. Paul’s mayor when the vote took place in 2022, advised Devlin to take part in that vote because Devlin did not have a direct pecuniary interest in the refund vote.
“However, our further interviews confirmed that no such conversation occurred prior to the vote on that date,” the ombudsman concluded in a revised report issued earlier this month.
The report indicates the ombudsman interviewed Hart, who said she “did not advise the councillor to vote or advise the councillor they were not in a conflict of interest.”
The ombudsman went on to state Devlin said in an interview she did not discuss her participation in the council vote with any other member of council.
The council resolution to refund the fees would have been defeated had Devlin recused herself and not taken part in the vote, the ombudsman wrote, adding Devlin was not consistent in her conflict declarations and recusals involving the development in question.
“It is ultimately the responsibility of each council member to identify and declare conflicts on matters before council, for each decision they make. This is not a one-time evaluation — it must be done independently for every matter that comes before council,” the ombudsman stated.
Inconsistency in declaring and managing conflicts of interest “can undermine the integrity of decision-making processes” in municipal councils, and “may contribute to perceptions of bias, erode public trust, and expose municipalities to reputational risks,” the report says.
In an interview, Devlin said she was a “young councillor” who believed she had to take part in the February 2022 vote to protect East St. Paul from legal action.
“My participation in the vote was to protect ratepayers, not to benefit,” Devlin said.
“At the time, I participated in what I genuinely believed was in the public’s best interest, but looking back, I understand the appearance of conflict matters.”
Devlin said she now makes it a priority to seek legal guidance whenever a potential conflict arises. She said she understands transparency and accountability is important in maintaining the public’s trust.
Hart could not be reached for comment.
The provincial ombudsman, meanwhile, said it is satisfied with actions taken by the RM of East St. Paul, which include the creation of a central record of all conflict disclosures.
