Canada is like a disfunctional family.

It would be better to change the constitution and reduce the # of MP’s to match the population shift. However, if we cant change it to institute an elected Senate, I am confident changing it to reduce the # of Quebec MP’s is an excercise in futility, and we have other battles to fight that are more promising. I say add the new MP’s, and dilute Quebec’s influence. It is quick and not that expensive compared to other issues.

I would have to echo a post on the Globe & Mail site. “Democracy is not the number of seats and seat warmers in the House, Democracy is to follow the wishes of Canadians. If 308 won’t enact the wishes of Canadians, what difference does it make to have another 30, who also won’t? Except to raise our expenses further.” I concur.

I agree that we are over governed. I also believe that our polictical system is not functional in its present form. We need to have a rational national debate about a new form of government. Politicians will fight any change in order to preserve their status, privilege and perks,and the debate will be acrimonious with partisan politics. I subscribed to the ideas of W.A.C. Bennet who proposed a House of The Provinces and Robert Bourassa who championed a confederation based on the European Paliamentry system. Government is most functional when it is closest to the people it serves. Municipal and Provincial governments serve the people well because they are cognizent of the needs and wants of their constituents. Our Fedderal government is to far removed from their constituents even though parliamentarians are elected locally because they must bend to the party rather than their constituents. We do not need M.P.’s. Provincial Ministries could do the job of each federal ministry through national consensus and a decision mechanism based on a requirement that any national program must have the approval of 7 out 10 provinces to become law. This would eliminate a whole, and in my opinion, ineffective level of government.

The Constitution as it exists is what we have to work with, we either increase the number of seats or all the further under representation of Canadians in Ontario, BC and Alberta.

I do not disagree about having fewer politicians but as you mentioned there are provisions in the Constitution that ensure some number of MPs that jurisdictions get. Now the Constitution can be changed with support of 7 provinces representing at least 50% of the population. The problem would likely be in getting support to reduce the number of MPs might be hard to achieve.

On another issue, is the NCC pushing for the elimination of the $1.95 per vote subsidy that the Conservatives have been pushing to get rid of for several years now?

We already have too many members. The USA with a population of 10 times our size does not have 10 times as many representatives in their Congress. It seems to me that we simply need to re-distribute the number of seats we now have.

More insanity from Ottawa we are grossly overgoverned in this country what a mess. The US. has about ten times the population of Canada. Canada with one tenth the population will have 338 members of Parliament and 113 senators, The US has 100 Senators and 435 members of Congress gives you an idea where Canada is. We simply cannot aford more Government.
No silver lining in the new seat distribution either it will most likely mean more Liberals in Ontario more NDP in BC and a few more Conservatives in Alberta.
Makes my head hurt.
JM

Judging by the price of sausage and spare ribs, we have an oversupply of pork in the economy. We obviously do not need more pigs at the trough!

The taxpayers are the employers and the members are our employees, paid to do the jobs assigned to them in Ottawa. We need a comprehensive, objective analysis of what all these people do now and what additional work or benefits we will realize by hiring more of them. The only time we see or hear from most of them comes through the media reporting on question period. What else do they do for the money we are paying them? Similar questions need to be asked with respect to the need for three provincial governments on the prairies. The massive combined bureaucracy is too much of a burden on the 5 million or so people being governed. As a recognition of the need for correct language I would suggest that we need “FEWER” politicians, not “LESS.”

A total waste of money that could be used to reduce the deficit.

The NCC proposal to reduce the number of seats is fine BUT… is it doable and worth the political upheaval an acrimony? In the scheme of things such a battle would take away the focus from the much broader goal of returning Canada to better governance. I am firmly convinced that the average Quebecois is interested in that too, so let’s aim for the broader picture. Avoid antagonizing our friend Gilles. Good governance rarely is the most efficient one. With all due respect to the good work NCC does, go for good statesmanship rather than political gutter fighting.

Want to balance according to population?

Take some away !!

We may have to grow government, to shrink it. Kind of like what PM Harper is trying to do with the Senate.

By that I mean, in order to get enough clout to ultimately shrink government, Western Canadians need “rep by pop”, & I’m an Ontarian saying that. But without an overwhelming MP majority in Central & Western Canada (again, based on rep by pop), Quebec & Atlantic Canada will never move away from their constitutional entitlements, thereby allowing a nation-wide shrinkage of government.

Funny how MP’s must “suck up” to voters to get elected into the HOC, (and the same is true provincially & even municipally) but once there, they are inclined to reverse the roles and to become “the boss”, intent on preserving their own, personal interests and privileges. Sad but true. By way of example, look at the stuff Premier Dad is doing in Ontario and imagine if there were to be another federal majority government of whatever stripe. A truly scary thought.

I do not mind if there are more MPs, especially if they are to come from Alberta and BC. They are not officials in any case.
What we need desperately is less government. There is not the slightest justification for our having THIRTY -NINE departments of state. (The US has 14, the UK 23.) There is not the slightest justification for a PM’s Office of over 100 meddlers. Churchill and Roosevelt had 5 & 6 respectively and they fought a world war for 6 years.
Hammer away at the important things!

I disagree with adding MP’s.More costs with likely no additional productive results.

We could save this cost and more by abolishing the senate. Talk about being over governed, an elected senate is the last thing we need.

When Bill Casey of Nova Scotia was kicked out of the Conservative party for voting against a bill to implement the budget he made the statement that as an independent he could now represent his constituents. Having made this statement then it is a given that he was stating that before becoming an independent he could not represent his constituents because he had to follow the leader or suffer the consequences, which he did. It makes no sense at all to have an additional 30 members of parliament who will not be representing their constituents but will be made to follow the leader or suffer the consequences if they don’t. The reality is that federally and provincially we do not have MPs and MPPs who represent the people who elected them they represent the party. A good case in point is the failed NB power deal between New Brunswick and Quebec. The deal did not fail because the Premier, Shawn Graham, listened to the people of Quebec but because Quebec made additional demands. Democracy had nothing at all to do with the failure as Shawn Graham was going to push the deal through regardless of what the majority of New Brunswickers wanted.

It also bothers me that Canada can seem to come up with an additional 400 million dollars to Haiti when we have been told that Canadians have to tighten their belts. I would hazard to guess that this 400 million is just going to be added on to our debt and if 30 more MPs are added, the million(s) that it is going to take for salaries and upkeep will also be added on to our debt.

Something drastically wrong with the thought process in Ottawa.

No more MP’s or Senators… enough, already!

Representation by population is one of the pillars of a democracy. You simply can’t discard this principle on the basis that it is not affordable. Besides, a more representive parliament would very likely result in a majority government and end these endless minority ones that put so much needed legislation on the back burner.

I couldn’t believe what I heard when this outrageous suggestion was brought up again. I agree with all the comments about Canada being over governed by a bunch of incompetents as it is. We badly need to reduce the number of lackeys at all levels. Too many fat politician on the public dole not providing any benefit to the taxpayer.

I don’t know about others but I am sick and tired hearing that we can’t do anything in egards to the senate or redistribution because of the constitution. I know we have constitution constipation in this country and I have often wondered what would happen if a political party suggested ripping up the current constitution and starting over again with input from the citizens. It’s been done in other countries throughout history. I can only imagine that a few would set their hair on fire but it is time we stop talking about change and start getting something done about it.

Read my lips! Canada already has too much government at all levels.
All these non-producers are enough to unbalance the economy, since they are paid too much.

Please amend my statement: “…listened to the people of Quebec…” to listened to the people of New Brunswick.

I have to agree with the notion that there are already too many clowns and general hog-swiller’s in the HoC at the present time… certainly no need for more.
However, as was pointed out, we have a constitution that gives us no choice, (no matter how flawed).
There have been some very good suggestions on here for remedy, I would probably prefer the one abolishing our current federal system for the idea of a “House of The Provinces”, that one poster attributed to W.A.C. Bennet.
Alas, I fear we are not about to see any meaningful changes in the 21st century.

I agree we need less politicians than what we have now. Abolish the parasitic Senate. Strictly have 1 MP for every 150,000 voters and adjust the riding borders, or alternatively have proportional representation, same basis 150,000 voters per seat in Parliament.
What a waste of time! Politicians, Diplomats, Bureaucrats fighting in Ottawa over what has happened to Afghanistan prisoners. Almost 150 Canadian soldiers have been blown to bits by these suspects. They have been handed over to their Afghan bretheren to be dealt with under Afghan culture! What is wrong with this. Do the Liberals and NDP want to bring these suspects to British Columbia, put them into prison at our cost and let them play golf in the Lower Mainland prisons?

“Too many cooks spoil the broth”

I AGREE WE DO NOT NEED MORE POLITICIANS. MAYBE WE SHOULD KEEP THE SALARY AND PENSION POOL A CONSTANT AND DIVIDE IT BY THE INCREASED NUMBER OF MEMBERS, PLUS THE COST OF THEIR OFFICE STAFF. WITH RESPECT TO THE LATTER,I SUGGEST THE SIZE OF THE OFFICES BE REDUCED SO THAT THE OVERALL SQUARE FOOTAGE IS NOT INCREASED. THE GOOD NEWS - IT DOES DILUTE THE BQ AND THE IDIOT DUCEPPE.
.

The numbers that are being talked about with the Conservatives are for BC and Ontario to have a proper count of Senators as we,BC are grossly under numbered with Senators representing this province.
But I think there are more important things to discuss,THE CHARTER OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS for one and how it is impeding our democracy and the common law of canada and the police and the courts as well
WHY do we accept the BLOC into our parliament as they are only there to disrupt and ask for more favours for Quebec,which I also add is NOT a have not province.The Bloc is not represented across Canada only in Quebec so why is it there?

I can understand that there are provinces that feel under represented due to population shift. But for us to grow government even more is just pouring more gas on the fire on our poorly managed bankrupted governement. We can’t afford what we have. Canadians had better start using their heads more than their hearts or there won’t be anything left. I think we’re almost there now. All of our governments are firm believers in redistribution of wealth. Let’s apply that to this circumstance and take from those with more seats and give to those with less. Oh ya, I forgot we’re supposed to cower in the corner when anything concerns dear Quebec. In the end we’ll get screwed again and get left paying the bill.

We are grossly over represented by politicians at all levels of
government. Given the BNA, there is no practical way to reduce
the number of Federal MPs. The only way to establish a measure
of equity is to increase their numbers, to reflect regional
population growth. Given that they are really voting machines,
under the whip of the leader, we could reduce costs by telling
them to stay in their Ridings; and, give their proxy to their
liege lord. In addition to saving on taxes, that procedure would
help voters to understand how Canadian “democracy” really works.

Please tell me in what manner you would like it to be moderated!

Oh goody, more MPs with nothing to do but dream up more ways to spend the tax payers money.

I have a suggestion to be able to reduce expenses, reduce costs to tax payers, and reduce the number of MPs: Simply throw Quebec out of confederation, and let them have their own way. When they come back, begging to be re-admitted, they can live within the same rules as everybody else, AND, they can all learn English so we don’t have to pay the expenses of having everything also in French. Anybody else who doesn’t like that can also leave.

To be realistic, Canada should have 79 MPs, and 23 Senators. Perhaps then they would be busy enough with the important things, and they won’t have time to dream up new ways to waste money. The MP ridings should be allocated by population, in as close to round ridings as possible, with no recognition of provincial, or territorial, borders. Senators should be ELECTED, two per province, and one per territory. In fact, it might even be better to combine all of the small provinces into one (yeah, I know - FAT CHANCE), and reduce the numbers even more.

More than that is completely uncalled for, and is perpetuated by politicians, for politicians. When the country was first formed, there was a reasonable argument for the number of MPs, and Senators, since travel, and communications, made it much more difficult for MPs to consult with their constituents. Today, they don’t need to move from their warm seats to talk to anybody, anywhere, at any time. In fact, communications would allow the people to actually do their own voting, with only a few members to monitor the results, and inform people about what they are voting on. Of course there are a few things that need to be kept secret, and the elected members should be fully informed, and should vote on those things.

I say, rather than expand the number of MPs, we should overhaul the Senate and give it the power to equally represent the regions, and effectively challenge or change bills passed by the house. Then elect senators to set terms instead of appointing them to lifetime rewards, and we’d have a vast improvement in the way we’re governed.

I would like to know exactly how many seats each province has and if they were determined on a population number.I am happy to hear that the senate now has an 8 year maximum, what happens after 8 years, an election of senators? I also think it high time that our senate by representaion is overhauled. Please tell me how many senators we have in ach province and the population of each provnce.

We need to reduce the members of parliment not increase them. However I do agree that as long as it gives Quebec less say in the running of Canada Then go for it! What we really need is ONE (1) rep from each province to represent us in the zoo called parliment.

I agree. We need less politicians. How about 1 per 125.000? That would reduce parliament to about 215. Next, do away with the Senate. We have the provinces to act as a kind of senate. The Premiers can get together and approve legislation in the same way the senate does now.

The problem is that Quebec was given too many MPs in the BNA Act back in 1867, having 75 members. Other provinces were given numbers more or less proportional, except for Alberta and BC, of course, who are underrepresented. The trick is to convince Quebec to have, for instance, 60 MPs instead of 75; then give proportional representation to the other provinces. Unfortunately Quebec would never go along with such a proposed constitutional amendment even though that province would not really lose any power. What to do?

I fundamentally disagree with the NCC on this one. Rep by pop is essential to our democracy. The West and Ontario are underrepresented in our country. If the worry is that we have too many layers of government - federal, provincial, municipal - then get rid of the provinces. The United Kingdom, at twice our population, gets by just fine with two levels of government, so why can’t we?

If the constitution says we should just commit national suicide or drive off a social or financial cliff, are we going to do it?
At some point, rational thinking must prevail, regardless of the difficulty.
There is no such thing as real leadership from behind as in reading polls.

Peter your articles are slowly showing that you are not biased toward the conservatives. I have been involved with both partys and now I am independent, and trying to them accountable. I don’t think I will ever belong to a party because they are like the communist party. Your eligins is to the party not what is right for the citizens.
Keep up the good work and inform us members how we can make these high paying selfish (MOST) politicians accountable.

You made a fundamental gross error in your preamble . There are FOUR levels of government in Canada - Federal Provincial Regional and Municipal.

The money going into the politicians pockets is going to bankrupt this country. Who will stop this greed and corruption. Hardworking taxpayers in this country are doomed to a life of poverty. It gets a little worse every year just like a slow-growing cancer.

i have to agree with the final statement. the bloc-heads wont be able to extort money as easily out of the rest of canada. if were lucky we’ll see more budgets like the one the quebec liberals passed this week. start showing those commies what things really cost.

The HOC should be reduced to 15 seats per Province not increased by more than 12%.
It is very discouraging that these people can go ahesd and grow their nest
and we cannot or will not do anything about it.
Given Mr. Harper’s backgroung in the NCC I would expect reduced Government
not more.
It seems all parties continue to grow Government. Who is there to vote for?

Maybe that is why voters are giving up.

Hi: I believe the Federal Government should be responsible for;

Foreign initiatives….but with public input such as referendums
Military
Plans for Health care…. but not the implementation
Collection and distribution of taxes ….at a low rate.

This would certainly mean there would be fewer MPs required.
Pat

The problem with reducing the number of MP’s is that it would also reduce the number of electoral districts. The ones that are too large now would be the ones that would be ibcreased in size.

Abolish the Senate and add a few Members-at-large to the House of Commons.Additional Members would be chosen to bring the representation more in line with the popular vote for each party. If they were chosem from the runners-up in the election, the constituencies with the largest number of voters would have greater chance of electing a runner-up, thus helping to give those districts more representation and reducing the need to increase the number of electoral districts.

The way things work in our country we will probably see our federal government offer Quebec billions in lieu of more seats. Wait and see.

Let me see. MPs and MLAs represent their constituents. Hmmm. I wonder why the kicked out Conservative MP from Nova Scotia stated that as an independent he could now represent his constituents. Mull over that one those who believe that our MPs and MLAs represent us.

This leaves Weestern Canada out in the cold again anyway!

What would be wrong for Ontario particularly if the whole of Western Canada
were to be allotted the same number of seats as Ontario has?

Why couldn’t the ridings be increased in size? Then the members might come close to earning their salaries.

The taxpayer cannot afford one more member of parliament and the gold plated pension that goes with it. With this idea I will vote for the first
party that opposes the Conservative government my party of choice.
I am in favour of reducing our members of parliament on all levels.

Most countries shoot traitors.
Canada puts them in government and pays them!
How insane can you get?

I’m a little surprised at the NCC’s position on this issue as well as some of the comments. The cost of a few politicians is minuscule compared to the amounts we spend on, for example, equalization payments.
Without more seats from the donor provinces, just how can a political party ever change this ‘entitlement’ attitude that predominates Quebec and eastern Canada?
The west, particularly Alberta, continually supports a triple E senate, less government and generally most of the same issues as the NCC. If NCC members want to see change, they should be encouraged by this move!

There was a very interesting discussion on the radio in the U.S.A. that I listened to.How do we lose our freedom like about forty four other Countries have. Well we pit the English against the French, the Protestant against the Catholic, the Christain against the Muslim and so on. After we have total chaos we find a solution, Everyone is treated the same, we take from the rich and give to the poor, we stop free speech in religion,we hand over the conscious of the Country to the news media that was held by religion.In the end we have socialism.When religion ceases to keep quiet we go on to Communism.
The Government should rule by being above fault! That way there is no need to rule by force! We do not need change. We need less Government with higher paid Politicians so there is no need to be putting their hands in the cookie jar. We need to have a heirarchy of business,tradesmen and labour. Our current situation is backwards. We need an eight percent increase on food at the farm level and an eight percent decrease at the wholesale level.

No more please, it would solve nothing.

More members of Parliament? - positively ridiculous!!!

(One correction though - it should be “fewer” politicians not “less” politicians.)

Yes, we do need less government and adding more MP’s for “prefered” representation is not the answer. What we need is more qualified MP’s with the ability to understand what this contry truly needs and work in the best interests of all Canadians not to those with special interests. “entitlement” We need to focus and put our priorities on those issues that will lead to a better Canada for all Canadians. Our present government has lost it’s way but unfortunately a good alternative is not evedent. Debt reduction is our #1 priority at this time so that we can begin to build a srong future to the benefit to all Canadians. Only strong leadership with the right vision can achieve this prefered objevtive. A minority government with not allow this to happen.

More bench-warmers aka back-bencher’s ~ ridiculous waste of our hard earned money! The only “good” “secure” jobs in North America now are Government jobs! That is not what our ancestors fought for.

we don’t need anymore politicians to spend our hard earned money.
Ed

I agree, we do not need more government reps. we have so much government intervention in our lives, but we asked for it by always saying let the government do it. We are being set up for the coming world government. P.M. Harper goes to the Bilderberg Meetings and they are not just having tea.
The more M.P.’s you get in there, the more control you will have because MP, have to follow the party line.
Great Democracy eh! Democracy sows the seeds of it’s own destruction.