Triple-E Senate
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Triple-E Senate (standing for equal, elected, and effective) is a topic of constitutional debate in Canada and a proposed plan to reform the current Canadian Senate. It calls for elected senators (Instead of being selected by the Prime Minister), equal representation of all provinces, and effective powers for the Senate to counter the House of Commons. A Senate having these characteristics within the Westminster System would closely resemble the Australian Senate which has had these characteristics since Federation.
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[edit] History
Senate reform has been an issue in Canada since its confederation in 1867. In September 1885 at a Liberal Party of Canada convention in Toronto, a policy resolution was put forward to reform the Canadian Senate on an elective basis, the policy was adopted, but never implemented. Among other resolutions put forward was one to abolish pensions for Members of Parliament. However, most debate until the 1980s focused on reforming the appointment process or abolition.
The idea of the Triple-E Senate was first brought to mainstream attention after Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau implemented the National Energy Program (NEP) in the wake of the energy crises of the 1970s. The legislation was unpopular in the Western provinces, especially oil-rich Alberta, but popular in the more populous Eastern provinces. Because the Liberals had a majority in the House of Commons, the legislation was easily passed. Western populists, outraged by what they perceived as exclusion from the decision on the NEP, looked towards the United States and began to believe that perhaps if Canada's Senate had been more like its American counterpart, senators from the four Western provinces could have forced the Senate to drop the program, or at least allow for significant amendments to it. The concept that the Canadian Senate should be elected with seats distributed equally amongst the provinces, and that it should exercise the branch's considerable power on legislation passed by the House of Commons, soon became a cause célèbre among Western populists, with one Alberta farmer even using his tractor to put "Triple-E Senate" in his wheat field.
[edit] Charlottetown Accord
During the debate over the ultimately failed Charlottetown Accord, citizens forums put Senate reform near the top of their desires for change. The original package that was presented by Constitutional Affairs Minister Joe Clark had a Senate with 6 senators from each province and 1 from every territory, and a proportional representation (PR) system to elect them. Also proposed were specific seats for First Nations (à la New Zealand). However, the Senate's powers would be reduced, and more Commons seats would be added to the populous provinces to justify the equality of the Senate.
During later negotiations, provincial premiers demanded that PR be dropped before agreeing, and instead the responsibilities for providing the senators fell to the province, who could send senators through their Legislative Assemblies or through popular election. This proposal, along with the rest of the Accord, was not particularly popular in the West, and the Charlottetown Accord was defeated in the four Western provinces in the national referendum held in 1992 and ultimately did not pass.
In wake of the failed Charlottetown Accord, the western-based, right-wing Reform Party came to prominence in the West and soon gained considerable political support there. The Reform Party and its leader Preston Manning became the most vocal advocates of the Triple-E Senate, promoting a plan with 10 senators per province.
[edit] Today
Senate reform was considered a priority by Paul Martin, to combat what he referred to as the "democratic deficit." Martin's plans for reform ultimately faded after his government fell to a minority. Martin would appoint senators, but took the historically rare step of appointing opposition members. Martin spoke out against what he referred to as "piecemeal" Senate reform, saying that it would create an unworkable combination of appointed and elected Senators.
The Conservative Party of Canada has endorsed an elected Senate, while rejecting the Triple-E label. After the controversy over his appointment of Michael Fortier, PM Stephen Harper has made Senate elections a priority.
