Loss of Judiciary independence and increased corruption

Loss of the independence of the Judiciary is a serious matter.

It is because the Canadian Judiciary is independent it was able to reject recent laws imposed after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that went too far in curtailing basic rights and civil liberties in the name of public safety. In fact these laws where not even needed, as stated by the RCMP.

For more detail see. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/27/opinion/27tue1.html

The judicial independence threaten by Conservative Government nomination changes. http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2007/02/top-canada-judges-say-nomination.php
Harper is naming a police and crime victim representative to the judicial panels.
Again an additional nomination is only required to remove the independence of the judicial. A police representative can be filled as one of the three appointment available to the federal government.

Here is a good technical summary of the changes.
http://www.cjc-ccm.gc.ca/article.asp?id=3072
The government is now appointing a fourth member to serve on each Committee. A related change is to remove the right to vote for the representative of the judiciary, except in the event of a tie. This means that there are seven members who are ordinarily entitled to vote, with four chosen by the Minister of Justice.
Because the majority of voting members are now appointed by the Minister, the advisory committees may neither be, nor seen to be, fully independent of the government. This puts in peril the concept of an independent body that advises the government on who is best qualified to be a judge.