Conservatives have charged that proposed new Senate rules are designed to hamstring their party
Canada's Conservative Party of Canada leader Pierre Poilievre speaks as Parliament's Question Period in the House of Commons in Ottawa, on May 1.One of Justin Trudeau’s first big moves after winning the Liberal leadership was to boot his party’s senators from caucus in early 2014. The move seemed bold, even inspired. It was meant to be a major step toward a then-discredited Senate ’s rehabilitation and help the new Liberal chief establish his political image as a postpartisan reformer.
“The Senate must be non-partisan. Composed merely of thoughtful individuals representing the varied values, perspectives and identities of this great country independent from any particular political brand,” Mr. Trudeauthen in announcing that, as prime minister, he would “put in place an open, transparent non-partisan” process for appointing senators.
There are still 13 Conservative senators in the upper chamber, who remain members of their party’s caucus and form the Official Opposition in the Senate. As such, they are allotted privileges and resources that members of the other Senate groupings do not enjoy. But the Conservative benches are thinning rapidly as Senators appointed by Mr. Harper reach the mandatory retirement age of 75.
While the Senate appointments process implemented by Mr. Trudeau may be non-partisan in name, no one can deny that the Prime Minister has overwhelmingly named like-minded individuals to the upper chamber who have, in turn, voted overwhelmingly for government-sponsored legislation. This, not its supposed non-partisanship, is the main reason the Senate has largely disappeared from the public consciousness in recent years.
Government Chamber Group Senators Motion Senate Move Liberal Brian Mulroney Stephen Harper
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