A bill banning organ transplant tourism has passed the Senate. The bill’s sponsor called it the “culmination of over twelve years of parliamentary work” to outlaw organ trafficking: “It is a violation of the principles of equity, justice and respect for human dignity.”
Federal returning officers say they will accept mailed ballots a day after polls close in an expected 2021 election, the Commons was told. Opposition MPs oppose terms of a cabinet bill that would permit the practice in a pandemic vote: “We do not want to do anything to open the door to even perceived influence in our elections.”
The Senate has passed a bill to appoint a part-time, $20,000-a year parliamentary artist laureate. “Some people don’t have much use for art,” complained one senator: “Many see it as mere decoration or curiosity. Worse, some see it as an escape from reality.”
A friend of mine, a federal contractor, recalls visiting his MP for help on a local issue. The MP grew increasingly irritable and finally threw up his hands, exclaiming: “What’s in this for me?” The meeting ended badly.
This collision of two worlds – the aggrieved petitioner and harassed legislator – is the core of The Effective Citizen. Author Graham Steele, a former Nova Scotia finance minister, acknowledges both petitioner and legislator have legitimate points, albeit on different frequencies, and explains how to tune dialogue to problem-solving.
“The best meetings were the ones where my visitors understood the environment I was working in, and helped me understand the environment they were working in, and together we had a constructive discussion about what was possible or not possible, and why,” writes Steele. “Those meetings were too rare.”
Steele has an unaffected writing style that’s enjoyable for readers, and an unvarnished view of the politician’s world. Many Canadians at some point interact with officialdom over a school closure or traffic light, arena grant, a disallowed pension or hire-a-student subsidy. “A hammer won’t help you if you need a screwdriver,” writes Steele. The Effective Citizen lays out all the tools.
“I’m not giving you secrets for working with politicians,” says Steele. “I’m giving you tools that will put you on a level playing field with politicians.” Among Steele’s practical guidance:
“Take half a loaf, and go back for the rest one slice at a time,” says Effective Citizen; “If the politician has previously taken a stance against you, all is not lost. Times change. Minds change. When a politician says no to you, understand it as meaning, ‘Not yet.’”
The Effective Citizen provides candid insight into the world of caucuses and backbenchers, useful even to readers who could not imagine petitioning their MP for anything, but remain intrigued by the many shortcomings of political discourse.
Why doesn’t Canada have national daycare? Why don’t we have pharmacare? Why don’t we have a national poverty reduction strategy? Steele thought of that. “Passion is not a substitute for public support,” he writes.
“For example, anti-poverty activists believe that poverty is a vote-moving issue,” says Steele. “I am very sympathetic to them, but they’re wrong: the fight against poverty does not sway many votes in a Canadian election. One of my former colleagues criticized me for having said so in a caucus meeting. Our former party went on to make poverty a central part of their platform in the Nova Scotia provincial election in 2017. They had their worst result in almost twenty-five years.”
By Holly Doan
The Effective Citizen: How to Make Politicians Work for You, by Graham Steele; Nimbus Publishing; 280 pages; ISBN 9781-7710-85311; $29.95
Broadcast Hall of Famer Senator Pamela Wallin (Sask.) yesterday said cabinet must seek wide public input on its bill to regulate YouTube. Proposed federal controls on the internet were so far-reaching they “morphed into the possibility of censoring online content,” said Wallin: “Even musing about any such censorship is anti-democratic.”
Canadians are skeptical of cabinet’s climate change program and fear higher costs for fuel, food and utilities, says in-house research by the Department of Natural Resources. Asked, “What would you say is the single biggest issue Canada faces when it comes to our natural resources?” the most popular response was: “Making sure we have enough.”
A senior Liberal MP yesterday was cited for breach of the Canada Elections Act in the 2019 campaign. “Honest to God it was a silly mistake,” said MP Kevin Lamoureux (Winnipeg North), parliamentary secretary to the Government House Leader: “It was just an honest mistake.”
Rogers Bank yesterday was cited for breach of Negative Option Billing Regulations after sending tens of thousands of credit cards to Canadians who never asked for them. The online Bank is a division of the former Rogers Cablesystems Ltd. that sparked a 1994 outcry on Parliament Hill with a similar practice targeting TV subscribers: “Many of us remember the consumer revolt.”
The Department of Transport yesterday said it is still working on regulatory reforms from the 2013 Lac-Mégantic train wreck that killed scores of people. Members of the Commons transport committee expressed astonishment at delays: “If a house caught on fire would you put it out a month from now after consultation?”
The Supreme Court yesterday dismissed an appeal by a restaurant owner who accused revenue agents of a malicious audit. Parliament five years ago rejected a motion to “establish an enforceable duty of care” at the Canada Revenue Agency: “It is important that tax authorities be held accountable.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau yesterday dismissed criticism of first-ever federal internet regulation as the work of conspiracy theorists. “Tinfoil hats,” he said.
Access To Information records show Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s office was unaware of millions in pandemic loans paid to businesses that never qualified in the first place. Staff in internal emails expressed puzzlement over payment of interest-free loans in breach of the rules: “Can I get concrete examples?”
Schoolchildren as young as 12 are using cannabis with frequent users of high school age now vaping daily, says Department of Health research. Data follow warnings that Parliament normalized cannabis use when it legalized it in 2018: “Many youth and young adults report they usually vape cannabis with friends or at parties.”
The Department of Environment yesterday said it’s unsure if Canadians will require federal permits to import plastic straws under a proposed national ban. MPs on the Commons environment committee pressed for details of cabinet’s plan to restrict single use plastics: “I know there’s a bit of confusion about this.”
A federal labour board has overturned the firing of a prison guard who fell asleep on the job. The Correctional Service of Canada called the guard’s conduct “abhorrent and ridiculous.”
