It’s time for MPs to stand up and take back Parliament

In February of this year Prime Minister Justin Trudeau broke a major election promise by declining to proceed with his pledge to change the electoral system in Canada. That decision of Mr. Trudeau’s has led to widespread anger across the country from people who feel the current “first past the post system” is not democratic enough.

I’d like to propose a different way to improve democracy in Canada. Why do we not simply insist that we make Parliament itself more democratic?

Canada has the most rigid party discipline of any nation using the Westminster Parliamentary system. Since the days of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, Parliament has grown less and less democratic and more centred on the prime minister (PM) and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Members of Parliament from the Liberal, Progressive Conservative, New Democratic Party, and Conservative parties have shown an utter lack of courage in standing up to this.

It is time to restore democracy to Parliament. And legislation is not needed. All that is needed is for MPs to show some courage and take back the power they have ceded to the PMO. I will outline some badly needed changes:

First and foremost, adopt the democratic ideas laid out by the Reform Party in 1990. They include:

1. MPs should be bound by constituent wishes on all votes if a consensus is known. No more should we see such disgraceful violations of democracy as PM Pierre Trudeau ordering his cabinet to vote against the death penalty in a “free vote,” PM Brian Mulroney throwing MPs Alex Kindy and David Kilgour out of the PC caucus for following constituent views and voting against the GST, or PM Jean Chrétien doing the same to MP John Nunziata for voting against a Liberal budget that didn’t abolish the GST as Chrétien had promised to do. These are only a very few such examples.

2. All votes in the House of Commons should be “Free Votes” followed by a separate “Confidence Vote” if necessary. Canada’s system of MPs mindlessly, blindly voting party line must be abolished.

3. In 1993 when the Reform Party came to Ottawa, it attempted to restore civility and democracy by following Step 1 above. It also advised the PMO of Chrétien every night before Question Period of what questions they would ask the following day and requested that the appropriate minister be available to answer in full and complex detail. MP Preston Manning personally assured Chrétien this would not be used to embarrass the government. What did we see? We saw the utter contempt that Chrétien and his government had for Canadians. Questions were answered using the “pivot” or not all. I ask — what value as a Canadian did I receive from Chretien’s refusal to co-operate? I suggest PM Justin Trudeau announce that, unlike his predecessors, he will ensure all questions in Question Period are given complete answers in detail if the opposition uses Mr. Manning’s plan of providing the questions the evening before.

4. Manning refused to allow his members to heckle, bang desks, feign outrage, etc. The government MPs (led by the infamous “Rat Pack” of Sheila Copps, Brian Tobin, and Don Boudria) didn’t become “Ladies and Gentlemen.” Their behaviour was reprehensible. Why doesn’t the current government, which has a majority, simply change the rules of the House to abolish such ludicrous, juvenile, and bullying behaviour?

These changes do not require legislation. They can simply be implemented by MPs.

As a historical footnote, the Reform Party gave up on points three and four when the media, among others, claimed they were not providing effective (or, more accurately, “entertaining” opposition.) I suppose that leads to the old point — why ruin a good argument with facts?

I would also recommend that Michael Chong’s first draft of his Reform Act be reintroduced and passed. (I noticed neither Trudeau nor the other party leaders at the time were openly enthusiastic about this when it was in first introduced.)

This would have restored power to the caucuses that have been gradually removed since the days of Pierre Trudeau. I blame all parties for this. It is time MPs took that power back. If you recall, various Australian PMs have been “fired” by their caucus as was PM Margaret Thatcher in Great Britain.

This action will prevent the usual Canadian model of a PM with a majority government, acting as an unaccountable “dictator.”

All these changes require only the courage of MPs of all parties. If you believe in democracy, urge your MP to act in this manner.