Two weeks ago, I noted that an op-ed written by Stephen Harper's point man on Senate reform, Bert Brown, seemed deliberately tailored to blunt the criticisms of Liberal Democratic Reform critic Stephane Dion.
Dion has been waging a very public attack on the Conservative's Senate reform bill, and it appeared the government was starting to feel the pressure, hence, the need for Brown to lay out a roadmap for future constitutional negotiations on Senate reform.
Then on November 18, Dion released the Liberal Party's seat redistribution plan. In his introduction to the proposal, Dion wrote:
Bill C-20, an Act meant to ensure "fair representation’’ of the provinces in the House of Commons, contains a major flaw: it would needlessly increase the number of MPs from 308 to 338, as well as the cost associated with adding these new seats.
Canadians are concerned about the additional cost of such an inflationary measure. The government's new proposal sends the wrong message: that it wants to gorge itself with more politicians while it slashes the public service and services to the public! This makes no sense. In these days of financial restraint, Parliament must take the lead.
Here again, in a move that seems deliberately designed to counter Dion's arguments, the Harper Government scrambled to reassure Canadians:
[Dean Del Mastro, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary secretary] said some of the functions of Parliament can be “further scaled back to make sure we are not expanding overall expenditures.” He even suggested a 10 per cent cut to office budgets is “an option” but added: “I don’t think that’s what we’ll do.”
MPs now have an annual office budget of $284,700. However, those who represent “densely populated constituencies” receive an “Elector Supplement,” which ranges from $8,700 to $52,140. There’s also a “Geographic Supplement” for MPs who represent constituencies of 500 square kilometres or more, which can range from $4,810 to $52,900.
The realignment, however, should eliminate the need for these added funds as larger ridings will likely be divided up and made more manageable to represent. Those funds would then be applied to the new MPs.
What makes Brown's and Del Mastro's responses somewhat unique is that they go beyond the usual belittle and dismiss handling of opposition criticism. In fact, constitutional Senate reform and cost cutting measures for MPs weren't even on the Harper Government's radar until Dion entered the fray. The Globe and Mail's Jane Taber went so far as to describe the Conservatives as "sensitive" to Liberal charges of government largess.
Dion's knack for putting the Harper Government on the defensive is an interesting trend, and worth keeping an eye on.
3 comments:
Except, Ontario Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty came out yesterday in support of the Govts seat distribution plan. So much for the "scramble".
McGuinty's support for the Government's plan does not diminish the fact that Harper via Del Mastro felt the need to address the cost issue raised by Dion and other Liberals. The "scramble" characterization still stands.
Anonymoron, McGinty's got one constituent -- the people of Ontario. Its understandable that he want to see a benefit of more seats, the more the better. Shock of shock that he doesn't support the option that wouldn't see his province receive a bigger piece of the pie.
Let the people of Canada decide --- i know, i know, that's such a foreign concept to drones from the CON party...
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