Apparently, the courts are the new enemy of Senate reform
So says the Prime Minister to his party faithful at their Calgary convention: “We were blocked by the other parties in the minority parliaments, and now we are being blocked…
Senate Reform
2015: The ballot question in Canada’s next election?
Methinks John Ivison has hit the nail right on its head with this: If the Auditor-General’s report does suggest a systemic problem of corruption and abuse, who would bet against…
Harper’s credibility, the evening news and life outside the Commons
The mistake many politically aware and involved people make is believing everyone follows the ins and outs of every political development as much as they do. They don’t. People are…
More On Duffy and Conservative Corruption
I must admit that while I really don’t much like Mike Duffy and the seemingly endless stream of evidence of corruption with him at the root of it is fatiguing…
Referendum on Senate? Only if it includes all options – including a “reform” one
Michael Bliss, Professor at U of T, argues in the Globe today that the Senate must be abolished, and lays out why it can’t be reformed. I’ll put aside that…
The Rot Starts At The Top
Regular readers of this space will know that I am no fan of Prime Minister Harper. Yesterday’s revelation that a “boot camp” for new Conservative Senators explicitly told the new…
The Legitimacy Of Harper’s Senate Appointees
With the latest set of revelations in the ongoing Senate Scandal, we find out that Senator Wallin spends the majority of her time living in Toronto. Frankly, I don’t much…
On The Ongoing Senate Scandal
As the summer wears on, more keeps dribbling out about the misdeeds of various Senators. Whether we are talking about Wallin, Duffy or Brazeau the outrage that we direct towards…
Even if it could, Senate reform shouldn’t proceed without the provinces – or the people
To the surprise of everyone in the Ottawa bubble, Her Majesty’s Minister of State for Democratic Reform, Pierre Poilievre, held a press availability Wednesday not to slam the Liberals for…
Plurality of Canadians want Senate “reformed”, not abolished.
At least, according to this Nanos poll: The survey asked Canadians what they would like to see done with the Senate. Respondents were overwhelmingly against the status quo, with 49…
There is an argument for the Senate – just not this Senate, or this House of Commons
The Senate has been much in the news lately, with the expense troubles of a few Senators – compounded by the mishandling of their investigation – bringing much negative attention…
One less provincial vote for Senate abolition
Premier Kathleen Wynne is taking the opposite position of what Dalton Mcguinty advocated: instead of abolition, she is for reform of the Senate: Kathleen Wynne, says she sees real value…
On Senate Reform
Your latest poll from Forum Research on what should be done with the Senate: “More than one third want to abolish the Senate. An additional 37% called for the Senate…
Premier Wynne can push for national referendum on future of the Senate
By Obert Madondo | The Canadian Progressive, Feb. 18, 2013: In, 2004, Stephen Harper described Canada’s Senate as a “dumping ground for the favoured cronies of the Prime Minister.” He…
Canadian Senate Reformers Should Not Cite The Australian Senate
Advocates of Senate reform (particularly direct election of Canadian Senators) have taken to citing Australia’s Senate as evidence that elected and democratically legitimate Senates are compatible with well run societies…
The Liberal leadership race is between Trudeau and Murray, with a 2014 early election
I decide when … The third debate is over. No-one blew their brains out. No-one surprised the audience. The race will be decided by March 4, when each of the…
The Sensible Path: Abolish the Senate
Calls for reform represent a stealth effort to foist a radical new form of government on an unsuspecting Canadian public. Aside from the cost (about $90 million per year) and…
Will Brazeau provide the needed momentum for Senate reform?
For years, one of the few things that I have agreed with Harper has been on the issue of Senate reform. I don’t necessarily agree on all the details, and…
Yet another Senate reform blogpost
Ideas to reform the Senate seem to be the Canadian version of the Holy Grail. This week, you’ve seen not calls for reform, but calls to abolish it with the…