Yesterday, Independent Senator Paula Simons wrote a piece for Maclean’s to explain her vote last week that essentially ensured that the Senate’s transport committee would not vote to report Bill C-48 (the west coast tanker ban) back to the Senate without amendments. It’s a mere delay to the bill, ultimately, and it’s likely that the full Senate will vote to reject the committee report and may entertain another amendment or two at Third Reading, but I would be mighty surprised if this bill didn’t get pass largely unmolested. But as much as I do respect the good Senator, I will take exception to a few of the things she wrote in her piece.

The biggest thing I will always, always object to is when senators say that it’s not their job to defeat bills passed by the democratically elected House of Commons. That’s false – it’s absolutely their job under the Constitution – that’s why it has an unlimited veto. The question is when they should use it, and I’m not sure that this is a good example of a bill, because it doesn’t fail any particular constitutional tests (Jason Kenney’s nonsense rhetoric aside). But for as much as Simons prevaricates on the question of how appropriate it is to block bills in the newly empowered “independent” mindset of the Senate (insert more back-patting about the lack of whips here), she then says that the other tradition is to defend her region, which she did. I have reservations about this line of thinking, because it gives rise to parochialism and some of the flawed thinking that gave rise to a bogus school of thought that believed that a “Triple-E” Senate could somehow force the hand of a government with a majority in the Commons (rather than just become a repository for 105 new backbenchers). If she really were defending her region, she should remember that her region includes BC, whose northern coast the bill is intended to defend. As well, her concerns ignore the process that Trans Mountain has been undergoing for the past year – just because it hasn’t started construction doesn’t mean it won’t, and trying to provide an alternate route that was proved far more problematic in the past – witness the Federal Court of Appeal decision regarding Northern Gateway – I’m now sure that she’s doing anyone any favours by letting the rhetoric of Kenney and the oil industry dominate her thinking.

In the meantime, we should brace ourselves for another round of obnoxious talk about the “Salisbury Convention” (which doesn’t apply to Canada and never has), and about the original intent of the Senate. It won’t be edifying.

https://twitter.com/PhilippeLagasse/status/1130956002029916162

Good reads:

• Justin Trudeau said that Canada’s retaliatory tariffs were key in convincing the Americans to lift their steel and aluminium tariffs.
• Trudeau also said that Western countries need to do more to curb Chinese aggression – but doesn’t plan to escalate current measures.
• A Canadian delegation including parliamentary secretary Rob Oliphant is currently in China, and our detained Canadians are on tehir list of piorities.
• Navdeep Bains released the government’s “Digital Charter” – ten principles for which the government’s policies, programmes and legislation will be tested.
• A report from the department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development calls for the Privacy Commissioner’s powers to be expanded.
• Mélanie Joly announced a new tourism strategy designed to grow the sector by 25 percent by 2025.
• The federal government has agreed to buy two more Offshore Arctic Patrol vessels from Irving to offset a production gap, but give these ships to the Coast Guard.
• Turkey says it’s willing to assist Canada in repatriating Canadian citizens who were former ISIS fighters being held in Syria.
• Here’s a look into the expert panel the government commissioned to look into advanced directives for medical assistance in dying, especial concerning dementia.
• The Chief of Defence Staff is getting a raise, and suddenly every yob with a Twitter account is saying it’s repayment for suspending Mark Norman, and come on already.
• The Conservatives are decrying the Liberals’ response to rural crime, and the report that they put out from the public safety committee.
• A Quebec conspiracy theorist is running for Maxime Bernier’s party.
• Ousted NDP MP Erin Weir has decided he won’t run again this fall.
• MLAs in Alberta were sworn in, and their Throne Speech is today, and then they plan to repeal the provincial carbon tax (only for the federal backstop to kick in).
• Kady O’Malley’s Process Nerd column looks favourably on Frank Baylis’ motion to reform the Standing Orders. (I am far less generous on the subject).
• Martin Patriquin talks to disillusioned members of Maxime Bernier’s party, who confirm that the “crazies” are now in full control of the party.
• Andrew Coyne is no fan of Quebec being given a greater say in the appointment of Supreme Court justices from their province.
• Kevin Carmichael pans Andrew Scheer’s “economic vision” speech.
• Heather Scoffield notes that both Scheer and Trudeau’s economic plans are addressing the things that the IMF is pointing out as things that need fixing.

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