Politicians are easy to dislike.  You won't get much of an argument from me on that point. But has the pendulum swung so far against the political class that it might be having a negative effect on how we govern ourselves?Take our federal system of public appointments.  Every year the government names key individuals to important posts laden with significant responsibility.  Once a playground for ex-politicians, there seems to be a clear message that those with political backgrounds need not apply. In fact, if you want a high-profile appointment in Ottawa, a lack of political experience seems to be almost mandatory.The announcement of former astronaut Julie Payette to fill the role of Governor General is a perfect example.  News of her appointment ended months of speculation of who might fill the vice-regal role.  Although many names had been bandied about, one thing was certain: there was no chance that a current or former politician might get the nod.And why would anyone think that a politician should be head of state?  Sure, there were those dark years when the Queen's representative involved former MPs, cabinet ministers or premiers including Roland Michener, Ed Schreyer, Jeanne Sauvé, Ray Hnatyshyn and Roméo LeBlanc. But that is all behind us.  Rideau Hall is thankfully a politician-free space.And it's not just the role of Governor General. Think of our prime minister's efforts to populate the Senate through an independent advisory board.  Canadians can now be senators if they can demonstrate a high level of "non-partisanship," ruling out most people who have held public office at the provincial or federal levels.The results have been interesting. Recent appointments include a long list of community and social activists who tend to have little or no political experience. Admittedly, a handful have served municipally. And then there is Senator Frances Lankin. Although she is a former provincial cabinet minister from Ontario, you could argue that her impressive record of community service made up for this youthful indiscretion.And what about officers of Parliament?  Efforts to appoint my former colleague Madeleine Meilleur as Canada's official languages commissioner caused quite a stir because she was a former politician.  Critics forced her to withdraw her application, dismissing a rigorous interview process and ignoring instances where former politicians have made effective officers.  Individuals like Ontario's former environment commissioner Gord Miller. A former Conservative candidate both federally and provincially, Miller went on to do an outstanding job.It is true that many individuals without political experience have filled these positions admirably while many ex-politicians have done a lousy job. And for the record, I am not a disgruntled applicant for the Senate (I hate filling out job applications).But effectively barring those with political experience from being even remotely considered for these key posts is doing a disservice to our nation on several fronts.The first is the most obvious.  The types of roles we are discussing benefit from having political experience. It is true that most days the Governor General is nothing more than a goodwill ambassador, but to quote the GG's own website: “One of the governor general's most important responsibilities is to ensure that Canada always has a prime minister and a government in place that has the confidence of Parliament.”This is not some abstract responsibility. Think of the minority government situation we are facing in British Columbia where the legislature is effectively tied. Or recall Stephen Harper's efforts to prorogue Parliament in the face of a motion of non-confidence. Two instances where the role of the Queen's representative cannot be simply dismissed as being a figurehead.The same is true for the Senate.  The upper chamber is not some graduate seminar where fine minds debate grand issues.  It is as much a part of the parliamentary system as the House of Commons and operates in the same type of rough and tumble, messy, political atmosphere.  As we move toward a situation where independent members make up the majority of the Senate, having a large contingent of former elected officials included probably makes sense.Beyond the practical reasons, there is the question of the message we are sending. We desperately need good people to go into politics and yet we seem to do everything possible to make the role unattractive.  Why are politicians like Justin Trudeau and his cabinet afraid to express pride in their profession by acknowledging that many elected officials, both current and former, have something important to contribute?We would find it absurd if we found out that recruitment efforts to populate the board of a Fortune 500 company focused on finding those with no previous business experience. Maybe it's time we started to borrow a little bit of that thinking when it comes to recruiting for key government appointments.John Milloy is a former MPP and Ontario Liberal cabinet minister currently serving as the Director of the Centre for Public Ethics and assistant professor of public ethics at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, and the inaugural practitioner in residence in Wilfrid Laurier University's Political Science department. He is also a lecturer in the University of Waterloo's Master of Public Service Program.  John can be reached at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @John_Milloy.