Provincial Municipal Affairs Minister Jeremy Harrison says forcing election candidates to make public their criminal records will improve accountability in northern areas of Saskatchewan. (Province of Saskatchewan)

Candidates running for office in Saskatchewan's municipalities might soon have to reveal their criminal records to the public under a bill introduced by the government on Monday.

Municipal Affairs Minister Jeremy Harrison called the proposed Northern Municipalities Act a first in Canada.

If the legislation passes, it would fall to individual municipalities to pass bylaws requiring election candidates to make their criminal records — if any — public.

While the legislation introduced Monday covers northern municipalties, the province will also extend the change to elections in other parts of Saskatchewan by amending the Cities Act, Harrison said.

"The option exists and each municipality is in the best position to decide if this is something that should become part of its local elections," Harrison said in a news release, adding a candidate with a criminal record wouldn't be disqualified from running for office.

The information about criminal records will help people make "more informed choices about who they wish to vote for," he said.

Harrison said the proposal resulted from "extensive public review" and consultation with northern communities.

In the legislature Monday, Harrison said the review found that northerners "strongly advocated mandatory criminal record checks" for everyone running in northern municipal elections.

However, the proposed law would make the checks mandatory only in those communities that want them.