The Liberal Government had introduced Bill C-44, an omnibus budget bill of the sort the Liberal Party had strongly criticized when utilized by the preceding Harper Government. The Liberal bill generated criticism because it included provisions to establish an Infrastructure Bank (an innovative and controversial initiative that would combine public and private funds to build infrastructure) and to impose an ongoing geared-to-inflation tax on alcoholic beverages.
There were widespread views that the Infrastructure Bank was a sufficiently complex undertaking that its provisions should be covered in separate legislation that could be given as much time and scrutiny as necessary. It was also felt by many that a government should not impose a continuing tax increase on alcohol via the inflation link, but should have to come back to Parliament each time it wished to raise alcohol taxes. The Senate expressed concern about both of these matters and ended up amending Bill C-44 to remove the automatic, inflation-based tax increases on alcohol before returning the legislation to the House of Commons.
Commons Disclaims Senate’s Legitimate Role
In what I would regard as a considerable over-reaction, the Commons not only rejected these amendments, but also took the position that the Senate did not have any authority to alter financial legislation. It then escalated the crisis by passing a motion to adjourn for the summer, essentially daring the Senate to stay its course and to leave the entire budget bill in limbo for months. Showing rather more moderation and judgment than the Commons, the Senate the next day allowed Bill C-44 to pass (with the inflation-indexed tax increase on alcohol) while asserting its right to amend any legislation, including financial bills.
Senate is (finally) Fulfilling its Role
While much of the subsequent commentary has raised concerns about an appointed Senate being prepared to thwart the will of the elected House of Commons, I find this criticism misplaced and invalid. It has always been the responsibility of the Senate to provide sober second thought with regard to legislation passed by the House of Commons. It has failed miserably in this role from the outset, because of the abuse of the appointing power by every Prime Minister until the current one. Instead of appointing people of moderation from all walks of life who would exercise their good judgment in reviewing legislation from the Commons, Prime Ministers have always appointed party faithful who were expected to support the positions taken by their party. This misuse reached a peak under Prime Minister Harper, with the appointment of prominent members of the media – Mike Duffy and Pamela Wallin – for the primary purpose of campaigning and raising funds for the Conservative Party, duties that had nothing to do with the role of a Senator.
Justin Trudeau provided a dramatic break for the historical pattern by taking two significant steps. Even before he became Prime Minister, he announced that all former Liberal Senators would be categorized as independents and would no longer caucus with Liberal MPs. Since become PM, he has appointed only independent Senators, with impressive backgrounds and qualifications. Over the past two years, the Senate has begun to assume one of the key roles for which it was created 150 years ago.
Since our constitutional arrangements make it virtually impossible to abolish the Senate, reviving it as a more independent body of sober second thought is by far our best option – and the current government deserves credit for the steps it has taken in this direction. The Senate has also acquitted itself well by drawing attention to government legislation which it finds deficient but then acknowledging the primacy of the Commons as the elected body within our two houses of Parliament. For the record, by the way, the Senate does have every right to question and even amend financial legislation. The only restriction that exists is that “money bills” must originate in the House of Commons.
Liberals Need to Accept What They Created
The Liberal Government’s recent behaviour with respect to the Senate has been curious. Having taken commendable steps to create a more independent Senate, the Liberals then became frustrated and angry when the Senate dared to exercise some independence. They need to recognize and accept what they have created. As long as the Senate exercises some restraint and doesn’t repeatedly block legislation that is passed by the Commons, we will benefit from having an upper chamber that can exercise that sober second thought envisaged long ago and still very much in need as a check on periodic abuse of power by governing parties.