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Elected Senate popular, PM's choosing not: poll

By: Mia Rabson

Posted: 07/24/2010 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

OTTAWA -- Support for the federal government's plans to start electing senators and limit their terms in office is growing, a new Angus Reid poll suggested Thursday.

However, a majority of Canadians also believe Prime Minister Stephen Harper is a hypocrite for appointing Senators despite his professed opposition to that system.

Weighing in on Red Chamber

ANGUS Reid polled a random sample of 1,003 Angus Reid Forum panelists, July 14 and July 15. The margin of error is considered to be plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

50 per cent of Canadians say Canada needs a Senate but should be allowed to take part in a process to choose senators.

25 per cent of Canadians say a Senate is not necessary at all.

9 per cent say Canada needs a Senate and the current appointment process for senators should remain

Senate reform options:

Abolish it: 31 per cent in favour, 39 per cent opposed, 30 per cent unsure

Elect it: 70 per cent in favour, 13 per cent opposed, 16 per cent unsure

Limit senators to eight-year terms: 70 per cent in favour, 12 per cent opposed, 18 per cent unsure.

Have a nationwide referendum to determine the Senate's future: 71 per cent in favour, 10 per cent opposed, 19 per cent unsure.

Stephen Harper is being hypocritical for appointing Senators despite his long-standing opposition to the Senate in its current form: 62 per cent agree, 38 per cent disagree

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The poll, taken from a random sample of Angus Reid's online Forum panelists, shows seven in 10 Canadians support the idea of electing senators, up from six in 10 a year ago. Seven in 10 Canadians also support limiting senators to eight years in office, up six points from a year ago.

Only nine per cent of Canadians are happy with the current system, which sees the prime minister appoint senators of his choosing and often with extremely partisan connections.

Slightly more than seven in 10 Canadians support a nationwide referendum to decide the future of the Senate.

Almost one-third of Canadians, 31 per cent, support the idea of abolishing the Senate, which is the position of the Manitoba government. Support for abolishing the Senate has not changed since last year.

The poll was taken July 14 and 15, and has a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.

Manitoba junior cabinet minister Steven Fletcher, who is responsible for Senate reform as the minister of state for democratic reform, said clearly Canadians aren't prepared to accept a status quo Senate any longer.

"Canadians want to have a say in who represents them in the Senate," said Fletcher.

Fletcher has two Senate reform bills currently before Parliament -- one that limits senators appointed since the 2008 election to a single, eight-year term in office and one that would give the provinces power to voluntarily hold elections for senators. The prime minister would then be able to appoint senators from the lists of nominees from the provinces' elections.

Harper has promised Senate reform since he took office in 2006 and has introduced bills to enact term limits and elect senators multiple times each. The bills generally died without debate when Harper prorogued or called an election.

Between 2006 and 2008, Harper appointed only two senators, leaving most vacancies empty while awaiting passage of his Senate reform bills.

However, in December 2008, when his government was teetering on the edge of defeat by an NDP-Liberal coalition backed by the Bloc Québécois, Harper changed his mind and filled 18 vacancies. He since appointed 14 more, for a total of 34. The Conservatives now have the most seats of any party in the Senate for the first time in 15 years.

Fletcher said Harper did it only to ensure a coalition of the NDP and Liberals couldn't beat him to it, and to put enough Senators in place to stop the Liberals from blocking legislation passed by the elected House of Commons.

However, 62 per cent of Canadians said Harper was being hypocritical for appointing to the Senate despite his opposition to the current system.

Fletcher said he's hopeful his bills will finally pass this time. However, the NDP favours abolishing the Senate rather than reforming it, and the Liberals have expressed concerns these bills were tabled without consulting the provinces. Also, in recent weeks, two Conservative senators have expressed concerns electing the Senate is not the way to go.

mia.rabson@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition July 24, 2010 A9

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