Step aside Reform! Senator says Tory senate is real opposition: the concentration of powers held in the Langevin Block by unelected members of the PMO is extraordinary
When the Conservatives formed the Senate opposition following the 1993 election, they had 58 members, a comfortable majority. There was a strong temptation amongst many PC senators to give as well as they took — in other words, to obstruct for the sake of obstruction. In the end, this approach, attractive as it appeared, was […]
Backbenchers fight back for influence, use leaks as fire power: on Parliament Hill, PMO nobodies are really somebodies
He was definitely arrogant, but then again arrogant people don’t often lie. They think they tell the truth because they believe they are the truth. When former prime minister Pierre Trudeau said MPs are nobodies “50 yards from Parliament Hill,” he wasn’t lying, but he was also only telling half of the truth. In fact, […]
House could pull all-nighters in push to get Clarity Bill through
Government House Leader Don Boudria has four days to get the prime minister’s most cherished bill, Clarity Bill C-20, through the House before hundreds of Liberals descend on the city for their biennial convention. The referendum Clarity Bill, which would lay down the ground rules for Quebec’s secession, has been described by Liberals as the […]
[Chair appointment]
Expertise, energy, commitment. ACA’s Board of Directors The Association of Canadian Advertisers is pleased to announce the appointment of Graham Lute, Senior Vice President, Marketing Communications and Corporate Affairs for Toronto-based Nestle Canada Inc., as Chair of its Board of Directors. Chair: Graham Lute Senior Vice President Marketing Communications and Corporate Affairs Nestle Canada Inc. […]
[Chair appointment]
The Board of Directors of the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) is proud to announce that Mr. Paul McLellan, has been elected 2000 Chairman of the Board at the CCA’s 82nd Annual General Meeting last week. Based in Regina, Saskatchewan, Mr. McLellan is the General Manager of Sun Electric (1975) Ltd., President and General Manager of […]
Government MPs go after the high-horse Auditor General’s office [House of Commons national defence committee]
Auditing the AG … Liberals on the House’s National Defence Committee have picked a fight with the Auditor General’s Office over what kind of questions they can ask representatives from the House’s top accountant. Committee chairman Pat O’Brien tabled a report in the House last week dealing with a feisty exchange between Liberal MP John […]
Boudria bows to pressure from angry Grit backbenchers [Government motion on how opposition parties can stall or amend legislation]
Government House Leader Don Boudria bowed to pressure from some angry members of his own caucus last week, forcing him to withdraw a contentious motion that would have muzzled the opposition in their fight against the Clarity Bill. After holding an emergency government caucus meeting last Thursday with some 40 government MPs, Mr. Boudria (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell, […]
Shepherd gives finance minister thumbs up: government backbencher Alex Shepherd says it’s not an election budget, not enough goodies [Annual post-budget analysis hearings in his riding]
Finance Minister Paul Martin’s move to index tax cuts took political courage but it may not get him much political credit, says a Liberal backbench MP whose annual post-budget analysis hearings in his Ontario riding have earned him some respect among his constituents. Liberal MP Alex Shepherd (Durham, Ont.), a former chartered accountant, held his […]
Bouchard puts on a big decision-making show, media eat it up [Youth summit]
Lucien Bouchard may or may not leave his post in the next few months. Stay or go, he must deal with a number of major issues that his government has managed to push back in time. One of his favourite approaches to administering the province has been to put on a big decisionmaking show. He […]
Dodge says scientist disciplined for calling colleague a “liar” [Senate Standing Committee on Privileges, Standing Rules & Orders]
Powerful Health Deputy Minister David Dodge appeared to have an obvious thorn in his side when he appeared before the Senate’s Standing Committee on Privileges, Standing Rules and Orders last week. His testimony came as the result of allegations by Health Canada scientist Shiv Chopra’s that his five-day suspension in August of 1999 was a […]
