Jasper Edge Persuasive Essay

Tuesday, November-26-13

The Canadian Senate is a shambles and needs to be fixed immediately. The Senate has been ineffective for decades, costing millions each year. Recent revelations of corruption, fraud and misuse of tax payers money make it all the more necessary to take action. The Canadian public has mixed views on the future of the Senate from abolishing it entirely to redistributing the seats.

The Senate was originally established to provide a degree of sober second thought. Once a Senator is appointed their seat, they stay there until they retire. This point is controversial because the Prime Minister often appoints people who have done his or her party political favours in the past. Since Senators are not worried about being re-elected every few years, it is not uncommon that over time their good behaviour slips. Allegations of monetary fraud and misuse of travel benefits are constantly coming to light. Senator Pamela Wallin is said have abused her travel benefits by charging taxpayers for unnecessary hotel stays, meals and transportation. Mike Duffy allegedly committed property fraud, claiming benefits for a second home he doesnt live in. These cases are just the tip of the iceberg, proving that it is necessary to make radical changes right now.

The Senate in its current form costs taxpayers over $60 million per year. Many believe that it is undemocratic and the present system of electing Senators is biased by their political affiliations. Page 1 of 3

Jasper Edge

Tuesday, November-26-13

One of the common views is to keep the Senate but to have it undergo a series of changes and reforms. One of the biggest changes proposed is to the seat distribution between provinces. The view they follow is that the Senate should be evolving to reflect the changes in Canadian population and economically important regions. Albertans are the main drivers behind this change as they feel the Western Provinces have been neglected despite their growing population and economic importance to Canada. People who want to keep the Senate but believe it is undemocratic, support changing the selection process to one of two options. First, Senators would be selected by the Provincial Legislatures. This option would result in the political patronage that is present in todays government. Secondly, Senators be elected by the public in the provinces. This would make the Senate more democratic but would result in our political system mirroring that of America. The Senate might then actually start reading the bills put before them. This would lead to stagnation with no major decisions ever being made. Critics say changing the selection process to either of these changes would result in the Senate costing us $120 million per year.

The best option is to completely abolish the Senate. This would save money but give the majority government to much unchecked power. Therefore it is necessary to look further back at what forms our government. In New Zealand there is no Senate. The Parliament is elected by a system called Mixed Member Proportional. MMP gives each voter two votes on Election Day. The first is for their local representative, and the second is a party vote. About half the seats in Parliament are made up of the area representatives Page 2 of 3

Jasper Edge

Tuesday, November-26-13

while the rest are filled by members of each party, their numbers dictated by the percentage of the national party vote. This mixes the Proportional Representation and First Past the Post systems. The parliament has a more diverse range of political parties while still giving each geographical area a representative. To pass any bills therefore, the Government must form coalitions with the smaller parties that share some common ideologies. These small parties play the vital role of checking the governments power, fulfilling the Senates job of sober second thought. If MMP can be implemented effectively we can abolish the Senate but protect democracy.

It is clear that immediate action needs to be taken to resolve current and longstanding issues with the Senate. By looking at the success and failures of political systems around the world it is clear that reforming our voting system would also be beneficial. Moving to the Mixed Member Proportional electoral system would simplify and unite our law makers, creating a strong body of representatives to lead Canada.

Page 3 of 3