The news media love to discover an issue such as the Senate of Canada. Abolish or reform is the question. They feast on the issue. They milk the story. It is their reason to be. It was no surprise therefore when political reporter Tom Clark made the Senate the lead story in his West Block show on Global Television yesterday.
But are Senator Brazeau’s problems enough reason to complain? Is Senator Duffy’s living arrangements reason to scold him? Or has Senator Wallin been travelling too much? Part of the problem is that Canadians have absolutely no idea what the Senate costs them or benefits them.
When Babel-on-the-Bay cast out the figure of $16 million the other day, that is the Senate’s own figures for salary and pre-authorized expenses. A couple readers insisted the total cost is well over $100 million for everything connected with the Senate but they had no answer as to what the value is that we receive.
On Tom Clark’s show, he must have been surprised when NDP ethics critic MP Charlie Angus backed away from abolishing the Senate. Angus has always been assumed to be a flat-out foe of the institution. Instead, he told Tom that the NDP stood firmly in favour of a referendum by Canadians. It was interesting later on the show when Liberal leadership contender MP Marc Garneau said a referendum was not necessary to fix the problems.
They are both very, very wrong. The Harper government is currently asking the Supreme Court to rule as to whether it is possible to set term limits or elect Senators without changing the Constitution. The Court has also been asked how we can go about abolishing the Senate. The Harper government also want the answers tomorrow.
This is not an opportunity for the Supreme Court to be creative. Canada’s constitution has been tied in knots for too long by a series of inept politicians trying to appease provincial governments. The one avenue that could possibly open things up would be a national referendum but the judges are unlikely to agree to piecemeal changes. While a national referendum would be a method to bypass the provinces, we would be colossally stupid to use that route just to change the Senate. Canada has more constitutional problems it needs to fix than that.
After almost 150 years, Canadians are entitled to an elected constitutional assembly that can address all our constitutional needs. This can be followed by another referendum to consider proposed changes. It will not be cheap. It will certainly not be easy. It is just what one of the finest countries in the world needs to be on a better path into the future.
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Copyright 2013 © Peter Lowry
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