Parliamentary Relatives: The Langs of Yukon, Alberta and Ontario

Article 1 / 9 , Vol 46 No. 1 (Spring)

Parliamentary Relatives: The Langs of Yukon, Alberta and Ontario

Twin brothers Archibald Donald Lang and Hector Daniel Lang, known as Archie and Dan, were well-known fixtures of Yukon territorial politics for decades. And, when Dan made the switch to federal politics upon his appointment to the Senate in 2009, he was not the first member of his family to serve in the Upper Chamber. In fact, he wasn’t even the first member of his family who bore the name Daniel Lang to serve as a senator. The twins, their grandfather, their great uncle, and their first cousin once removed, were part of a family with a long history of public service. As Dan notes, “Public affairs was always the first topic discussed at the dinner table.”

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Alternative Dispute Processes in a Parliamentary Setting

Article 3 / 9 , Vol 46 No. 1 (Spring)

Alternative Dispute Processes in a Parliamentary Setting

Following news of the discovery of 215 unmarked graves on the grounds of a former residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia, members of a family placed children’s shoes at the entrance of Ontario’s legislature as a memorial to commemorate the victims. The memorial impeded access to the legislature’s entrance. Unaware of the unfolding news of the gravesite discovery and the establishment of similar memorials at legislatures across the country, members of Ontario’s Legislative Protective Service (LPS) approached the family as they prepared to conduct a smudging ceremony to request the shoes be moved to a more appropriate location. When they declined to move the memorial, the discussion escalated to a verbal impasse that was resolved when the Sergeant-at-Arms, who spoke with the family’s Member of Parliament, agreed to temporarily allow it to remain in place. Concerned that the interaction demonstrated a lack of empathy on the part of the LPS in light of events across the country, some MPPs submitted a written complaint to the Sergeant-at-Arms. Following a meeting with the family, the LPS agreed to participate in a restorative justice process. In this article, the authors explain how the LPS, by stepping outside its standard operating procedures and participating in this process, recognized the value in exploring alternative complaint resolution strategies and thereby adopted a new alternative dispute mechanism. The article concludes by noting the Assembly has created a new Indigenous Liaison position and is in the process of installing a permanent Indigenous Shoe Memorial inside the legislature.

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Experiments in Co-Leadership in Canada

Article 4 / 9 , Vol 46 No. 1 (Spring)

Experiments in Co-Leadership in Canada

Two political parties with elected members in Canadian parliaments have or appear to be in the process of adopting co-leadership models. Although the co-leadership option has become well-established among some parties in other countries, this type of structure is still somewhat of a novelty in Canada. In this article, the authors illuminate examples of co-leadership in international contexts, outline the pros and cons of this type of arrangement according to existing political science literature, and explore how co-leadership has worked or may work among its Canadian adherents. The authors conclude that while the co-leadership model has multiple democratic and practical benefits, leadership arrangements where there is centralization in a heroic leader have clear advantages in an era of brand-based politics and that it remains unlikely that parties in government or on the cusp of forming government will adopt this system in the near future.

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