A decade of Harper
How his self-appointed mission of change has touched all Canadians
OTTAWA— Shortly after the Conservatives defeated the Paul Martin-led Liberals at the polls on the night of Jan. 23, 2006, a triumphant Stephen Harper stood before a cheering crowd of supporters in Calgary.
“Tonight, our great country has voted for change, and Canadians have asked our party to take the lead in delivering that change,” said the man who was soon to be sworn in as prime minister.
For 10 years since, Harper has steadily pursued his self-appointed mission of change, and the results have indeed touched the lives of every Canadian. While the shifts in policy and governmental practice have often been incremental, Harper has occasionally mused aloud about how much he believes the country has changed during his tenure.
“We’ve made it a policy of moving incrementally but constantly (in a more conservative direction) in our eight-anda-half years in office,” Harper said during a question-and-answer session at Goldman Sachs in New York in 2014. “So, look, I think we’ve moved and I think the country has moved with us.”
In his years at 24 Sussex Dr., Harper has built his brand around the themes of lower consumer taxes and reduced income taxes for corporations and certain voter groups; increased emphasis on Canada’s military traditions; budget restraint; support for families; and harsher sentences for criminals.
On the international front, Harper eschewed previous governments’ efforts to enhance Canada’s influence by participation in the United Nations and other multilateral institutions, saying Canada will no longer act in such a way as “to please every dictator with a vote at the United Nations.”
His “principled” approach, particularly Ottawa’s unwavering support for Israel, appears to have been popular with some voters, especially in the Jewish community. But Harper’s lack of enthusiasm for multilateral diplomacy was also controversial and was seen as a contributing factor in Canada’s embarrassing failure to win a temporary UN Security Council seat in October 2010.
In government, Harper by all accounts reduced the cabinet’s reliance on analysis and proposed ideas from senior government officials, greatly tightened control of messaging, reduced contact with the media and put less emphasis on science and data for decision-making, including eliminating the mandatory long-form census. Political discourse in federal circles generally took on a more polarized tone, including in Parliament.
The Harper government spent heavily on government advertising while the Conservative party pioneered the use of extensive attack ads to undermine the appeal of their political opponents.
Returned to power with a minority in the 2008 election, the Conservatives were nearly toppled by a Liberal-NDP coalition (with the support of the Bloc Québécois) in the uproar over then finance minister Jim Flaherty’s Nov. 27 mini-budget. To avoid defeat in the Commons, Harper had to ask governor general Michaëlle Jean to dissolve Parliament temporarily. The Conservatives returned to Parliament early in 2009 with a $45billion economic stimulus package to prop up the economy and the coalition dissolved, ensuring Harper’s minority government another two-and-a-half years in office.
By 2011, Harper was focusing his election appeal on the need for a strong, stable majority government at a time of enduring global economic instability. A major factor in the 2011 campaign was the result of an intense campaign led by Defence Minister Jason Kenney over several years to win the allegiance of newcomers to Canada, a group that had previously thrown much of its support behind the Liberals.
Partly because of the success of this campaign, the Conservatives achieved a majority by putting together support in the West with an upsurge of support in Ontario, capped by a breakthrough win of 32 of 47 seats in the GTA.
Four years later, the Conservatives are vying for a rare fourth consecutive vic- tory in an election that will be a referendum on Harper and his record.
Here’s a look at how a decade of Harper has changed the landscape:
ECONOMY
While economic management has been a strong point for Harper in the public’s view, the Conservatives in 2008-09 presided over the worst recession in decades and a period of largely mediocre growth since. Last fall, the government projected robust economic growth of 2.6 per cent for 2015, but the Bank of Canada says it will actually be a meagre 1 per cent this year.
After running budget deficits for seven consecutive years, the Conservatives have promised to balance the books in 2015. But the parliamentary budget officer says the current economic downturn could push the government back into a budget deficit.
Despite an estimated $60 billion in business tax cuts since 2006, business investment — a key driver of economic growth — remains below expectations. Youth unemployment, at 12.9 per cent, is a continuing concern. Household debt hovers at record levels and the Canadian dollar has fallen to the 70-cent (U.S.) range on exchange markets, the lowest in many years.
The Conservatives reduced the GST, brought in tax free savings accounts and provided tax breaks for other groups, including a recent controversial tax reduction called income-splitting for couples. Overall, with fewer tax revenues, the federal government’s ability to undertake national programs may be reduced over the long term.
Back-to-work legislation was intro- duced by Ottawa at Air Canada, Canada Post and CP Rail.
ENVIRONMENT
The Conservatives pulled Canada out of the Kyoto Protocol on curbing greenhouse gases and have maintained that climate change can only be accomplished if all major emitting countries agree to pollution reductions. The government has acknowledged that Canada is not on track to meet its current 2020 goal of reducing greenhouses gases by 17 per cent below 2005 levels. And it remains unclear how Canada will manage to meet its newly announced 2030 target of a 30percent reduction.
Harper recently agreed with other G7 leaders to phase out the use of fossil fuels by the end the century.
Under the Conservatives, Ottawa has scaled back environmental protection measures built up over decades, streamlined regulatory approval for natural resource projects and engaged in a political standoff with green activists, some of whom have been accused by the Conservatives of being foreign-financed radicals bent on depriving Canadians of the benefits of development.
In recent years, the provinces have moved independently of Ottawa to develop programs to fight climate change.
JUSTICE
From eliminating the long-gun registry to making it illegal to purchase sex, the Conservatives have acted despite declining crime rates to overhaul the judicial system. In keeping with a law-and-order agenda, the Harper government moved to largely eliminate the possibility of parole for multiple murderers with what is called the Throw-Away-the-Key-Law, end accelerated parole review for nonviolent offenders, stop judges from giving double credit for time spent in custody before sentencing and introduce mandatory minimum sentences for certain offences. But the Conservatives have been blocked by the courts on numerous occasions, including the government’s effort to overhaul the Senate, reduce health care for some refugees and shut down a safe-injection site in Vancouver. And Harper raised eyebrows across the country when he became involved in a personal dispute with Supreme Court of Canada Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin after the court blocked a Harper appointment to the country’s highest bench.
SOCIAL ISSUES
The Conservatives cancelled the deal struck by the previous Liberal government and the provinces to set up a national early learning and daycare plan. Instead, the Conservatives launched the Universal Child Care Benefit, a family allowance program increased by $4 billion annually in the last budget. Changes to employment insurance have made it harder for laid-off employees to qualify for benefits, with only 26 per cent of the jobless qualifying in Toronto. Beginning in 2023, Canadians will have to wait until they are 67 — two years longer than under current rules — to receive old age security payments. And the Conservatives have for years brushed aside calls to improve Canadians’ pension deficit by enhancing the Canada Pension Plan, saying it was a job-killing
tax. But the Conservatives said recently they would explore the possibility of allowing increased voluntary contributions to the CPP.
The Conservatives also scrapped or reduced federal funding for a wide range of programs for aboriginals, women, gays and the environment. The Harper government rejected widespread calls for a judicial inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women. And the government has taken a hands-off attitude toward Canada Post’s replacement of home mail delivery with community mail boxes.
HEALTH CARE
In negotiation with the provinces, the previous Liberal government had set an annual increase of 6 per cent in healthcare transfer funds from Ottawa. In 2011, the Conservatives told the provinces the formula was being scaled back as of 2017. The provinces said this would amount to a cut in health-care funding of $36 billion over 10 years.
FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND DEFENCE
Harper has redefined Canada’s foreign policy, de-emphasizing involvement with multinational institutions such as the United Nations in favour of what the Conservatives call a more principlebased international stance. In practice, this has been most noticeable in Canada’s approach to the Middle East, where attempts to reduce tension by acting as an “honest broker” among countries in conflict have been largely replaced by unmodulated support for Israel.
Under Harper, Canada extended its combat mission in Afghanistan until 2011 and has taken a tough stance against Russia and Iran. Fighter jets have been deployed as part of a NATO mission in Libya and against ISIS in Iraq.
Canada has put more emphasis on economic diplomacy — as opposed to aid diplomacy — abroad under Harper, while also pushing to finalize free-trade deals in Europe and Asia. Relations with the United States have been frayed over the lack of approval of the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the U.S.
Harper has also made the health of women and children in developing countries a Canadian priority.
The Conservatives gave new prominence to Canada’s ties to Britain and the country’s past military actions. They promised to expand military spending but later cut the defence budget as part of their drive to eliminate the federal budget deficit. A plan to replace Canada’s aging fleet of CF-18 fighter jets with F-35 fighter bombers is in limbo after controversy about the procurement process for the $45-billion purchase. Veterans were showered with honours in government ceremonies, but many complained about lack of adequate services.
GOVERNANCE
Vowing to clean up Ottawa, Harper brought in the Federal Accountability Act in 2006. But the Conservatives over the years have been plagued by a wide range of criminal charges and ethical lapses related to influence-peddling, violation of election law, mishandling of taxpayers’ money and conflict-of-interest cases. The Conservatives have also been accused of undermining the authority of Parliament by ceding too much power to the prime minister, misusing the Access to Information law, muzzling scientists, keeping budget-implementation information secret, driving legislation through the Commons without proper scrutiny and using the prime minister’s ability to arrange for a temporary shutdown of Parliament to avoid defeat at the hands of opposition parties.
Harper has avoided previous prime ministers’ practice of holding regular first ministers meetings with the premiers.
The use of more than $750 million in taxpayers’ funds to promote federal government programs since 2006 has been controversial. So has the earmarking of $13.4 million for Canada Revenue Agency to audit charities, including environmental groups, to see if the organizations broke the rules by engaging in too much political advocacy. Critics said the Conservatives were using the taxman to intimidate their critics; the government denied it.
The Conservatives changed election rules to establish a four-year fixed election date, setting the stage for longer campaigns, and tightened voter ID requirements, prompting complaints that students, First Nations, the homeless and others may be discouraged from turning out to vote.
SENATE
The Senate has been a source of trouble for Harper in recent years as revelations of misspending in the upper chamber have emerged. At the forefront is Mike Duffy, who was made a senator by Harper in 2008. Duffy faced 31charges, including fraud, bribery and breach of trust, by the RCMP. He pleaded not guilty.
Harper was drawn into the scandal when it came out that his former chief of staff, Nigel Wright, had secretly written a $90,000 personal cheque for Duffy. The payment, which allowed Duffy to pay back $90,000 in questionable expense claims, was part of a months-long backroom campaign by officials in Harper’s office to keep the Duffy spending mess under wraps. Harper said he was kept in the dark by his officials.
In addition to Duffy, Harper-appointed Sen. Patrick Brazeau is also facing a charge of breach of trust and fraud in relation to an RCMP investigation into living and housing expenses. Former broadcaster Pamela Wallin, also named by Harper to the Senate, remains under a police probe for her expenses, although no charges have been laid.
Conservative Sen. Don Meredith is under investigation by the Senate’s ethics officer after published allegations last month about a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old. And the RCMP is reviewing the cases of 30 senators after a scathing audit by Auditor General Michael Ferguson of Senate spending records.
ENERGY/PIPELINES
Harper partly anchored his tenure in power on the idea of cementing Canada as a global energy superpower. At the heart of this economic strategy was building more pipelines to export Canadian oil, including oil from the massive oilsands development in Alberta, to foreign markets. But this approach ran into unexpected resistance from environmentalists and others concerned about contamination from spills and the rise of global warming.
The Northern Gateway pipeline from Alberta through the Rockies to the coast of British Columbia was tentatively approved by the Harper government but construction has been held up — some say blocked for the foreseeable future — by its opponents. And approval of the Keystone pipeline to the U.S. has been held up for years. Other projects in Canada may face similar hurdles, with no new pipeline capacity likely for at least several years.
SECURITY/TERRORISM
The Conservatives took steps to improve Canada’s protections against terrorism after what Harper called “despicable attacks” on Canadian armed forces personnel last October. A young soldier was shot and killed at the National War Memorial in Ottawa and a Quebec soldier was killed in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, not far from Montreal.
Bill C-51, the resulting legislation, criminalizes advocating and promoting terrorism, and gives CSIS more power, including the power to disrupt alleged terrorist plots, an expansion of the spy agency’s intelligence-gathering role. Judges will be allowed to give CSIS permission to breach the usual rights and freedoms of an individual. The law prompted widespread concern among those who say it opens the door to a police state. The NDP has vowed to repeal the law and the Liberals would amend it.