Devolin Column
November 16, 2006

Unelected Senate Delays Important Legislation

After 141 days of delay, the Liberal dominated Senate finally, on November 9th, returned the Federal Accountability Act to the House of Commons for third reading. 

Sadly, the important legislation which was passed by elected members in the House of Commons in just 72 days was substantially weakened by the unelected members of the upper house. And as you will recall, swift passage of the Accountability Act was a specific commitment made by Conservatives during the January election campaign.

This delay and watering down of C2 (the Federal Accountability Act) is only possible because, there are 62 Liberals in the Senate, compared to just 21 Conservatives.

The Liberal Senators concocted over 110 amendments, most of which did real damage to the act. In contrast, Conservative Senators moved around 40 amendments most of which were technical in nature. For example, correcting clause numbering errors, page numbering errors, and ensuring English and French were exactly the same.

Some of the Liberal Senators’ amendments include:
· Increasing the political donation limit from $1000 to $2000;
· Delaying implementation of the new Accountability laws until after the Liberal leadership race, possibly as late as 2008;
· Removing the Wheat Board from inclusion under the Access to Information Act;
· Allowing political staffers to jump the queue and get priority placement over other applicants for public service jobs.

It seems that the Liberal Senators are suggesting that the Accountability Act was an overreaction, and that things weren’t really so bad. This kind of arrogance can not be tolerated in a modern and mature democracy like Canada.

Last spring, the Accountability Act was passed by a majority in the House of Commons, mostly Conservative, NDP and Bloc Quebecois members, who were appalled with what had happened within the Liberal Party of Canada in Quebec and the still-missing millions of public dollars.

As someone with a strong belief in democracy, I find it unacceptable that Senators never elected by the people of Canada – but appointed by Liberal Prime Ministers dating back to Pierre Trudeau – are openly challenging elected Members in the House of Commons for control of Canada’s political agenda.

As many of you know, I have long advocated a reformed and elected Senate, while resisting calls to abolish it. That’s because I believe that large federations like Canada are best served by a bicameral legislature that can effectively represent regional issues.

However, after observing the Senate from up close for more than two years, I have reached the point where I believe abolishing the Senate is preferable to maintaining it in its present form. For me, this is a significant change of heart. In fact, I find it increasingly shocking that so many people in an advanced democracy like Canada continue to tolerate the status quo regarding the Senate.

Can you imagine what would have been said if one of the new democracies in Eastern Europe had set up a system where 25% of its parliamentarians were appointed by the Prime Minister – possibly for 30 or 40 years? People from around the world – including Canada – would have decried it as an affront to democracy.

For me, Canada’s anti-democratic Senate is equally offensive. That’s why the Senate’s current behaviour is unacceptable. And that’s why, in my opinion, it’s time for more Canadians to demand change in the “red” chamber.