Hell hath no fury like a commissioner scorned?

(Fred Chartrand/Canadian Press)

In one of his last acts as public safety minister, Peter Van Loan appointed Ian McPhail as interim chair of the Commission for Public Complaints against the RCMP. 

Little is known about McPhail, beyond being a Toronto lawyer who has served on a number of boards and commissions, and has sturdy ties to the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party.

McPhail replaces Paul Kennedy, whose term was not renewed at the end of last year.  But the government has not heard the last from Paul Kennedy. 

Next Tuesday morning, Kennedy will join former Military Police Complaints Commissioner Peter Tinsley in reading statements at a Liberal-organized forum on governance. 

Linda Keen, the former head of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, will deliver a video message as well. 

Michael Ignatieff invited them to the event. 

The Liberal leader and his MPs are back in Ottawa, in an effort to show Canadians they want to get back to work, despite Parliament having been prorogued. 

The forum is one of several scheduled events.  It will take place on Parliament Hill and focus on the relationship between the federal government and independent agencies and quasi-judicial bodies. 

It's not too hard to guess what Kennedy, Tinsley and Keen will have to say.  All three were, to put it lightly, not amused with how their work for the government came to an end. 

Kennedy had wanted to see through expected legislation on providing civilian oversight for the RCMP.  His reports included blunt criticism about how Mounties take notes, handle Tasers, investigate themselves, etc. And in the last days of his tenure, Kennedy lashed out at RCMP Commissioner William Elliott, accusing him of trying to delay the publication of several of his reports.

The government also refused to renew Tinsley's appointment, even though he wanted to continue his work on the Afghan detainee issue. 

And Keen, who was fired while serving her second term as head of the CNSC, accused the natural resources minister of ignoring her advice to close the Chalk River nuclear facility.