CKNW Editorial
for May 31, 2000

It’s puzzling, until you think on it for a bit, why the Canadian Alliance leadership hopefuls are being so fuzzy when it comes to real reform of how we run our affairs. But there are two reasons I can think of.

The first and most troubling is that they really don’t want reforms because if they attain power they want the same exercise of it we’ve seen in Liberal and Conservative Prime Ministers past. A clue in this regard can be seen in the gradual but steady change in how Preston Manning ran his caucus when he became Leader of the Opposition and was trying to position himself to be government. Suddenly, it seemed that he was all in favour of his caucus exercising free speech unless it ran counter to his views or what he deemed to be in the best interests of the party. Both Mr Long and Mr Day have either been in government or so close to it that they can understand the value of a leader having a bag full of sticks and carrots and have no intention of abandoning that bag of goodies. They would comfort us with thoughts of free votes and an elected senate, about which more in a moment.

If the problem can be simply stated that we have a tyranny of a majority achieved by a minority of voters … that is to say that 50%+1 of the House of Commons elected by less than 40% of the voters, mainly from two provinces, have 100% of the power then this question ought to be fairly stated to voters by the Canadian Alliance leadership candidates along with the steps they see as necessary to solve the problem.

The second reason we’re not hearing about real reform from the leaders is, paradoxically, the other side of that coin. None of the candidates has ever been a government backbencher so they think somehow that free votes will empower government backbenchers. The fact is they will do no such thing. The Prime Minister always lets it be known what he expects. Even if he doesn’t do it in a formal way, he leaves no doubt as to where he stands. In fact, in the last real free vote in the Commons – on Capital Punishment, in the 80s – Pierre Trudeau made his views known with one of the best passionate speeches of his life. The Prime Minister doesn’t have to tell government MPs how to vote – they’re not fools. They can read the signposts on the road to political success very well. The Canadian Alliance leadership hopefuls, again distracting, deliberately, from the real issue, talk of electing the Senate. Of course we should have an elected senate but have they considered what would happen if the presently constituted senate were elected? Their powers, on paper, are roughly equivalent to those of the House of Commons but by convention they’re never utilized. How long would it take a senate with a voter mandate to exercise those powers to the fullest? It'’ bad enough to be out voted about 102 to 6 in the present, virtually toothless appointed Senate but what sort of regional upper house would it be where Ontario and Quebec had half the senators all of whom believed that their election conferred upon them the right and obligation to actually do something?

The only leadership candidate who has shown any understanding of these issues is Keith Martin. Oh, I think all the others understand all right but they’re trying to take your eye off the ball with idle platitudes which seem to promise reform but if decoded simply say more of the same, with the useless provisions for free votes and an elected Senate thrown in.

It’s true that the candidates are trying to appeal to members, not voters … but they’re also trying to get hitherto uncommitted voters to join the party and support them. As a British Columbian who devoutly believes that the pr4esent system will be the ruination of the country, and even more devoutly believes that this should not be permitted to happen, I must express my deep concern at the dismissal of these matters by the three major contenders who content themselves with broad, unenforceable platitudes.

Were I a member of the Canadian Alliance I would unhesitatingly support Keith Martin as the only one with the courage to state the problem as it is and offer solutions, which mind you are tough medicine to many … but solutions that go to the root of the problem.