Author: revparlc

The Constituency Project Ten Years On

This entry is part 11 of 14 in the series Vol 37 No 2 (Summer)

The Constituency Project Ten Years On

Ten years ago an enterprising Ph.D candidate at the London School of Economics spent four months touring nearly 100 of Canada’s federal constituency offices — what he calls perhaps “the country’s most dramatic if accidental parliamentary reform” — in an attempt to better understand a political culture where voter participation and trust in government were on the decline. In this article Peter MacLeod reflects on some of the subtle insights he picked up during his journey and looks to future innovations. He concludes by asking if, in the digital age, new generations of MPs will be more inclined to think of their offices and local budgets in terms of open platforms for community building and learning.

In 2004, I returned to Canada after two years spent tracking the New Labour experiment from my post as a researcher at the London think tank, Demos. Though post-9/11, these were still heady, pre-recession days where the British government was on a spending tear, London was booming, and Anthony Gidden’s call for Third Way politics still felt fresh.

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Parliamentary Bookshelf Vol 37 No 2

This entry is part 12 of 14 in the series Vol 37 No 2 (Summer)

Parliamentary Bookshelf

Gendered News: Media Coverage and Electoral Politics in Canada by Elizabeth Goodyear-Grant, UBC Press, Vancouver, 2013, 246p.

In early February, Liberal MP Chrystia Freeland rose to ask her first question in the House of Commons. For most new MPs, that initiation is usually a proud, if intimidating, milestone. For Freeland, who had won a tough Toronto by-election in November, it was a test of fortitude. The former business journalist was asking about the prospects for Canada’s economic recovery when the Conservative heckling commenced. The Speaker interceded twice but the mostly male voices jeered more loudly. On her third try, Freeland finished a truncated query. Shortly after a federal minister replied with a stock answer, Vancouver Observer journalist D. Matthew Millar offered his advice: “Put on your “big girl” voice for [for Question Period],” he tweeted, “the Hon. Members water glasses are shattering.”[sic]

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A Year to Remember, 150 Years to Celebrate

This entry is part 1 of 10 in the series Vol 37 No 1 (Spring)

Vol 37 No 1A Year to Remember, 150 Years to Celebrate

Prince Edward Island prides itself on its historic role in the development of Confederation. Celebrations are planned throughout 2014 in honour of the 150th anniversary of the original Charlottetown conference.

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The Senate – An Essential House of Parliament

This entry is part 2 of 10 in the series Vol 37 No 1 (Spring)

The Senate – An Essential House of Parliament

The Senate plays a critical role in the form and function of the Canadian Parliament. In this article, the Hon. Noël A. Kinsella highlights the Senate’s role as a regional counterweight to representation by population, an independent source of legislative review, an excellent source for investigative policy studies, and a place where appointments can sometimes balance disparities in representation of the Canadian population in the elected chamber. This article is revised from remarks made to the 31st Canadian Presiding Officers’ Conference in Ottawa.

Yet again the Senate is at the centre of a constitutional debate. Last November, the Supreme Court of Canada sat three days hearing arguments on the Senate, dealing with various issues about its reform or abolition. These questions were brought forward by the federal government to clarify the parameters of possible changes or reforms to the Senate. In brief, the government wants to know what it can do without involving the constitutional amending formula of either 7/50 or unanimity. This concentrated attention is not new: in Quebec City in 1864, the Fathers of Confederation devoted six days to the topic of the Senate.

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Perspectives on the Election of Committee Chairs

This entry is part 3 of 10 in the series Vol 37 No 1 (Spring)

Perspectives on the Election of Committee Chairs

The following is a revised and abridged version of the October 21, 2013 debate on MP Brad Trost’s private member’s motion (Motion No. 431) which proposes to instruct the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs to: (a) consider the election of committee chairs by means of a preferential ballot system by all the members of House of Commons, at the beginning of each session and prior to the establishment of the membership of the standing committees; (b) study the practices of other Westminster-style Parliaments in relation to the election of Committee Chairs; (c) propose any necessary modifications to the Standing Orders and practices of the House; and (d) report its findings to the House no later than six months following the adoption of this order.

Brad Trost (Saskatoon—Humboldt, CPC):

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The Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly Building: Honouring our Past and Embracing our Future

This entry is part 4 of 10 in the series Vol 37 No 1 (Spring)

The Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly Building: Honouring our Past and Embracing our Future

This article looks at the 20th anniversary celebration of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly building and discusses the political developments that led to its construction.

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Political Donations and Democratic Equality in Canada

This entry is part 5 of 10 in the series Vol 37 No 1 (Spring)

Political Donations and Democratic Equality in Canada

Equality is a key tenet of democracy. With respect to the financing of federal political parties, one issue relevant to equality concerns has received surprisingly little attention: the phasing out of political parties’ annual per-vote subsidy, set to occur in 2015. Donations from individuals will henceforth become the parties’ primary source of funding; but not all Canadians donate equally. By examining a sample of disclosed donors from Elections Canada databases, combined with census data on neighbourhood income levels, this study establishes that donors are substantially more likely to come from wealthier sections of Canadian society. Despite a relatively low cap on donations – individuals can currently give no more than $1,200 annually – wealthier Canadians carry disproportionate weight in the total aggregate of donation dollars. The study concludes by briefly comparing federal rules to regulations at the provincial level and suggesting methods of mitigating inequalities in the political finance system.

The very essence of democracy is equality.1 Fairness in politics is undeniably something Canadians desire. Since the 2011 federal election, these principles have been front and centre, as a number of issues relating to the conduct of elections have been making headlines and have been actively debated by Canadians concerned about the quality of democracy in this country.

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House of Commons Committee Chairs: Perspectives of Two Members of Parliament

This entry is part 6 of 10 in the series Vol 37 No 1 (Spring)

House of Commons Committee Chairs: Perspectives of Two Members of Parliament

In this article, the author looks at the issue of the impartiality of chairs of the House of Commons standing committees during the 41st Parliament. He explains the importance of the Standing Orders of the House of Commons, constitutional conventions on responsible government and the disciplinary mechanisms influencing the behaviour of committee members. He suggests reforms to improve the operation of Canada’s House of Commons by examining the situation in the United Kingdom and the way in which the Standing Orders of the House of Commons have evolved over time.

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