WANNA SEAT?
THE LIBERALS HAVE PROPOSED PUTTING SENATE SELECTIONS INTO THE HANDS OF AN INDEPENDENT ADVISORY BOARD, WHICH MEANS NEARLY ANY CANADIAN COULD BE NOMINATED TO SIT IN THE RED CHAMBER.
From Don Cherry to Chad Kroeger, any Canadian citizen could conceivably find themselves considered for a Senate seat under a suite of new reforms that opens up Red Chamber nominations to the public.
“People can even appoint themselves … although I actually hadn’t thought of that,” said Emmett Macfarlane, a political scientist at the University of Waterloo who was hired by the Liberals to compile an early draft of the reform proposal announced Thursday.
The changes, announced by Minister of Democratic Institutions Maryam Monsef, seek to end the Senate’s 148-year reputation as a bastion for political patronage.
Since Confederation, Senate appointees have been selected in relative secret by the prime minister. Thursday’s Liberal proposal, however, would put Senate selections into the hands of a fiveperson “non-partisan” and independent advisory board.
The board would review nominations from “coast to coast to coast,” in the words of Monsef, and present a “non-binding” short list to the prime minister, who would retain ultimate veto over who gets a Senate seat.
The federal government posted a kind of senatorial want-ad online laying out the preferred qualities for an ideal Upper House candidate.
Would-be senators must “demonstrate a solid knowledge of the legislative process and Canada’s Constitution.” They must also be at least 30 years old, have an overall net worth of $4,000 and “recognized record of service to one’s community.”
Potential nominees must also disclose any prior political involvement or activities, and show that they can behave in a manner that is “independent and non-partisan.”
“Fluency in both official languages will be considered an asset,” it added.
Macfarlane said the proposed changes provide a key chance to build a Senate that is not “a bunch of former politicians and Order of Canada members." Nevertheless, he said the proof will be in whomever Trudeau appoints to the advisory board.
“If the federal appointees are just a bunch of Liberal supporters, then suddenly it’s looking a lot less like a nonpartisan process,” he said.
And, of course, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will still retain veto over appointees, which might become pertinent if, say, a John Baird makes the shortlist.
“What some consider most controversial about the Senate is that its members are appointed,” wrote Senate speaker Leo Housakos in a Thursday open letter endorsing the reforms.
“Yet, ironically, this is precisely why senators do a great deal of good work,” he added, saying the body is not “bogged down by ... partisan sound bites.”
While the advisory board would bring senate appointments in line with how Canada selects judges, the democratized nomination process is akin to the Order of Canada, which currently allows any Canadian to nominate a fellow citizen for consideration.
However, Macfarlane suspects that the Liberals will likely be staying as far as possible from any comparison to the Order.
“I think the government wants to get away from the idea that this is a reward for service,” he said.
Within minutes, the proposed system earned the ire of B.C. Premier Christy Clark, who announced in a Twitter post that the provincial government “will not participate in the process outlined today to appoint senators.”
Former media baron Conrad Black, who remains a member of another upper chamber, the U.K.’s House of Lords, called it a “good faith step toward meritocracy.”
Although Black recommended that senators serve for renewable five-year terms instead of receiving life appointments since “a commitment to public life to the age of 75 is a greater sacrifice than most very successful people can make in their prime.”
Senate nominations may soon become a prime consideration of the non-profit sector, as charities and environmental groups ensure that a steady stream of their preferred nominees are put before the advisory board.
"The Broadbent Institute has no intention of nominating any Canadian for consideration for a Senate appointment,” read a statement by Rick Smith, executive director of the Ottawabased progressive thinktank. He noted that the group’s namesake, former NDP leader Ed Broadbent, would reject any possible offer of a seat in the Senate