Democratic Reform
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www.policymagazine.ca January—February 2016 Canadian Politics and Public Policy Democratic Reform $6.95 Volume 4—Issue 1 PDF/X-1a:2003 When you choose VIA Rail for your business travel, you help reduce government expenses and create value for taxpayers. Plus, you maximize your productivity along the way. So get on board with train travel today. TMTrademark owned by VIA Rail Canada Inc. Route # of daily Distance Productive Non-productive Cost of Cost of Taxpayer savings departures train time car time* travelling travelling by by choosing by car** train (as low as) train travel*** Ottawa Toronto Up to 16 450 km 4 h 01 min 4 h 34 min $467 $441 $423 Ottawa Montréal Up to 12 198 km 1 h 47 min 2 h 27 min $227 $331 $194 Ottawa Québec City 2 482 km 5 h 23 min 4 h 39 min $488 $491 $439 Toronto Montréal Up to 17 541 km 4 h 34 min 5 h 30 min $562 $441 $518 1 Government of Canada employees receive 10% off the best available fare on all trains and classes of service offered by VIA Rail Canada. Available for both business or personal travel. Conditions apply. For more information, contact PWGSC Shared Travel Services. * 30 minutes was added to the total travel time by car in order to account for traffic and bad weather en route. ** The total cost to the taxpayer of travelling by car is calculated based on the following formula: $ cost of travel by car (Treasury Board kilometric rate for Ontario of $0.55/km for car travel by a government official X total distance travelled) + (average hourly rate of $48/h for a government employee, based on a salary of $100,000 per year including employee benefits X travel time) = $ total cost to taxpayer *** The value of travelling by train is calculated based on the following formula: Cost of travelling by car – cost of travelling by train = taxpayer savings 2100, rue Drummond Montréal (Québec) H3G 1X1 09/10/15_09:44 Client : VIA Rail Nº 111139040 Format du PAP : 100% Description : MAGAZINE Nº VIA 5891-15 Trim : 8,5” x 11” Publication : Policy Magazine ( Novembre-Decembre ) Type : 7,5” x 10” ( 0,5” ) Conseillère : Annick F. Bleed : 8,75” x 11,25” ( 0,125” ) Infographiste : Eric L. Visible : N/A Nom du fichier : 111139040_VIA_5891-15_Policy_Magazine_Nov-Dec_En.indd Les sorties laser ne reflètent pas fidèlement les couleurs telles qu’elles paraîtront Couleur : CMJN sur le produit fini. Cette épreuve est utilisée à des fins de mise en page seulement 2 Canadian Politics and Public Policy EDITOR L. Ian MacDonald [email protected] ASSOCIATE EDITOR Lisa Van Dusen [email protected] CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Thomas S. Axworthy Andrew Balfour, Yaroslav Baran In This Issue Derek H. Burney, Catherine Cano Margaret Clarke, Celine Cooper From the Editor / L. Ian MacDonald Susan Delacourt, Fen Osler Hampson 3 Democratic Reform Daniel Gagnier, Martin Goldfarb Patrick Gossage, Brad Lavigne 5 David Mitchell Kevin Lynch, Jeremy Kinsman Farewell, First-Past-the-Post? Andrew MacDougall, Velma McColl Jennifer Smith David McLaughlin, David Mitchell 8 In Defence of Canada’s Electoral System Don Newman, Geoff Norquay Frank Graves Robin V. Sears, Gil Troy 11 Democratic Reform and The Trust Factor Anthony Wilson-Smith Bruce Carson WEB DESIGN 15 How the “Fair Elections Act” Backfired Nicolas Landry and Helped Defeat the Harper Government [email protected] 18 Adam Dodek SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR The Political Fire Walking of Senate Reform Grace MacDonald Michael Chong [email protected] 24 Can We Finally Fix Question Period? GRAPHIC DESIGN & PRODUCTION Monica Thomas CANADA AND THE WORLD [email protected] 26 Jeremy Kinsman Policy Trudeau’s Summitry Marathon—Impact Without the Pirouettes Yaroslav Baran Policy is published six times annually 29 by LPAC Ltd. The contents are After the Fall: Lessons Learned copyrighted, but may be reproduced and Renewing the Conservative Brand with permission and attribution in Velma McColl print, and viewed free of charge at 32 From Copenhagen to Paris: The Hard Work of Multilateralism the Policy home page at Guest Column / Elizabeth May www.policymagazine.ca. 34 The Achievement of the Paris Agreement Printed and distributed by St. Joseph Kelvin Dushnisky Communications, 1165 Kenaston 35 Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 1A4 Anatomy of a Corporate Makeover 37 Jean Patenaude Special thanks to our sponsors Rail Legislation: Unintended Consequences and advertisers. Victor G. Dodig 40 Building Canada’s Modern Economy iStock cover image Column / Don Newman 44 Last Call at Hy’s Policy 3 From the Editor / L. Ian MacDonald Democratic Reform elcome to our special issue reform during the week the House was civil war.” Trudeau also used the G20, on democratic reform, sitting in December, 41 per cent of APEC and Commonwealth summits, which promises to be a ma- Canadians told EKOS they preferred a as well as COP21 in Paris, as occasions W nd jor agenda item in the 42 Parliament. form of PR, while 25 per cent preferred to build his network with internation- either FPTP or a preferential ballot. al leaders and to declare that “Canada For openers, there’s the Liberals’ repeat- is back” on the world stage. ed vow that the 2015 election would Bruce Carson looks at the controversial be the last to be held under the first- Fair Elections Act and finds that mea- Across the floor from the Liberals, the past-the-post voting system. Contrib- sures designed by the Conservatives to Conservatives now sit as the Opposi- uting Writer David Mitchell considers suppress voter turnout “actually had tion. Contributing Writer and long- a menu of voting options, from some the exact opposite effect as they gal- time Conservative strategist Yaroslav form of proportional representation to vanized both university students and Baran looks at the Tories after the fall, preferential voting to a single transfer- Canada’s indigenous population to and considers their prospects for re- able vote. He also looks at the question obtain the identification required un- newal. “The first tenet is that there are of mandatory voting, as in Australia, as der the Act and vote in numbers never no quick fixes in politics,” he writes. well as on-line voting. “An emerging before seen in a federal election.” “Second, Parliament matters.” The generation of young Canadians,” he Conservatives “must take their Offi- University of Ottawa professor and writes, “seems intent on being able to cial Opposition role seriously and put constitutional author Adam Dodek exercise their democratic franchise in in the work.” And third, tone, which considers what to do about the Sen- the same manner in which they now Rona Ambrose has already trans- ate, beginning with Justin Trudeau’s increasingly live: online.” formed with “sunny ways” of her own. creation of an Independent Advisory Jennifer Smith, former chair of po- Board to recommend non-partisan From Paris and COP21, Contributing litical science at Dalhousie, offers a appointments by the PM. The larger Writer Velma McColl takes us through spirited defence of the FPTP system, challenge, Dodek writes, is that “the the marathon negotiation of 195 which, she asserts, has served Canada Senate is not an expert panel of inde- countries that finally led to the Paris well for a century and a half. “Those pendent, diverse voices, although it Agreement on December 12. Green who support a robust version of PR in may serve this function at times, and Party Leader Elizabeth May shares her the expectation that it will underpin serve it well. The Senate is a critical thoughts on the climate change ac- progressive coalition governments for- and constitutional part of the day-to- cord in a guest column from Paris. ever,” she writes, “had best be careful day process of legislating in Canada.” what they wish for.” e also offer three interest- Conservative MP Michael Chong, au- ing business pieces in this Pollster Frank Graves of EKOS has thor of the Reform Act, looks at sev- issue. Barrick Gold Presi- eral aspects of democratic reform, W done extensive research over the years dent and CEO Kelvin Dushnisky on public trust in politicians and the from the election of committee chairs shares his thoughts on his company’s political system. He finds that while to whether and a new parliamentary corporate makeover in response to the trust reached historic lows under the election system should be submitted challenge of declining gold prices. For- Harper government, Canadians have a to a referendum. mer CN vice-president Jean Patenaude high degree of optimism for the new looks at the unintended consequences n our Canada and the World sec Trudeau government. of railway regulatory legislation. And tion, veteran diplomat Jeremy CIBC President and CEO Victor Dodig “Six in 10 Canadians hold a positive Kinsman looks at Trudeau’s out- I writes that innovation is the key to outlook on the health of democracy, of-the-gate world tour. The new prime growing the economy. “To put it sim- which may reflect just how far basic minister’s first weeks in government ply,” he writes, “innovators are all barometers of trust in government featured a whirlwind of global sum- about finding new and better ways of and democracy had descended under mits and conferences. And not all of it creating value.” Harper’s watch,” Graves writes. “What was scripted. “At the G20,” he writes, is remarkable about this indicator “terrorism in Paris launched a wide- Finally, columnist Don Newman is how this newfound optimism is ranging discussion of how to confront writes about last call at Hy’s and the shared by Canadians of every region, and defeat ISIL, while engaging the closing of an Ottawa institution, one gender, age group, and educational global refugee crisis, so aggravated where pols and journos alike checked cohort.” Asked about parliamentary by the seemingly intractable Syrian their guns at the door.