Could an Independently Elected Multi-Party Executive Work? by Lee Johnson
Hi Club,
For the record, my dream retirement is sitting on the beach of Turks and Caicos, proudly flying the Maple Leaf outside my condo, clinking glasses of Pimm's with King Harry I after a day on the polo fields and anticipating an evening of Hockey Night in Parrot Cay.
I do have a general constitutional idea that I would like to debate.
In fact, I think this idea merits a paper or at least article, which I would like to get people's input or even co-authorship on:Statement: Canada was set up as a federal system, with some powers enumerated to provinces, some to federal. That was during an era where the expected role of government was basically limited to trade/commerce, law and order, and foreign affairs. That role has expanded dramatically ever since, into such areas as education, health care, culture, and so on. Perhaps the most important role that government plays today is in management of the environment.
However, since this issue did not really exist in 1867, the constitution leaves jurisdiction over the environment as kind of a gray area (the Crown Zellerbach case illustrates this point). Worse, the position of the great majority of Canadians on the environment (as with health care) becomes politicized as it is blended or diluted with unrelated matters like Afghanistan, gay marriage, or the gun registry.
Proposition: the Canadian constitution should be radically revamped to be better equipped address environmental issues. First, there would need to be a clear enumeration of the environment as a federal issue--climate change is not a local or provincial issue. But the ultimate step, in my mind, would be to not just have federal and provincial elections, but SPIN OFF the election of very important Ministers, such as Health or Environment: have their leadership elected completely independently of the "rest" of the federal government. They would still work within the same federal government, same cabinet, same building, etc. But they could appoint their own staff, and perhaps select their own MPs for committees.On election day, we would be able to elect a Conservative government, for example, if we trust them on "the economy" and "fighting terrorism", with an NDP Health Ministry and a Green Environment Ministry.
Interesting thought? Of course, a major stumbling block to such a structure would be in arranging funding. But I can imagine, for example, a formula where, let's say, the GST (very visible) was to be entirely dedicated to these portfolios-- of the current 6%, maybe 2% to the environment and 4% to health care. During the election campaign, for example, the NDP's Health candidate could propose a 0.3% hike, and the Conservatives a 0.5% drop. And then the electorate could decide what they thought of the way health or the environment were being handled, and vote for whomever they wanted at the end of the term. I'm not sure what to do in the case of a deficit--I guess maybe legislating a "no deficit" policy would be necessary. (Though that comes with its own set of problems. No question, funding is the trickiest part, as with everything in this world.)
Anyway, there is a lot to work on there, but it seems to me that such "sacred" and "permanent" mandates as Health and the Environment are too important to get tangled up in the economy or same-sex marriage. Every election day, many "hold their noses" as they vote for the Liberals for Health care while they really want the Conservative Defense platform, or for the NDP because of their Labour policies, when they would prefer the Green Environment policies.Prediction: The end result would not only improve the state of Canadian environment and health policy (by better reflecting Canadian popular opinion-60% favour Kyoto, about the same oppose ANY privatization of health care), but also leave the electorate feeling more empowered, and ultimately contribute positively to national unity. After all, if we could take health care and the environment "off the table", I would feel a lot more confident about my federal vote, and there would be a lot less people in the West "resentful" of the Liberals, and many more in the East less "scared" or Tories...Please table this at the meeting, or maybe forward it to the membership via email. I can't wait to hear what people think.
posted by will at 4:02 p.m.
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