Roundup: MPP pay freezes serve no one

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There was a piece in the Star yesterday about how MPPs in Ontario have had their salaries frozen since 2008, with no plans to lift it anytime soon. This is the kind of thing that populist rhetoric engenders, and it’s terrible for the state of our politics. While nobody is in politics to get rich, particularly in Canada, we are pretty miserly about what we want to pay our elected officials, and every time there is some kind of economic downturn, we immediately demand that they either freeze or cut their salaries to “set an example” (which is ridiculous because I have yet to see any senior executives in the private sector freeze or cut their pay in response to bad economic times—they get further bonuses, especially if they manage to reduce payroll during said tough times).

It cannot be understated that we underpay our elected officials, particularly at the provincial and federal levels, for jobs that are fairly 24/7 in most instances—especially in the era of social media where they are expected to perform at all hours of the day and night, and where they can’t go to the store without being expected to be “on” and engaging with their constituents. And in a lot of cases, people take a pay cut to become an elected official, particularly if they are doctors or lawyers. We say we want to attract the best, but the longer this kind of thing goes on, the more it will only attract those who are already wealthy and can live with the pay cut. Oh, and Ontario killed their pensions for MPPs decades ago, so on top of being underpaid, they don’t get a pension out of it either, which just makes it all the worse proposition for someone.

Nevertheless, we already have the astroturfers at the so-called “Canadian Taxpayers Federation” griping that Toronto City Council and the mayor are getting a modest pay rise this year, and because legacy media laps up everything they put out, this feeds the hairshirt parsimony and cheap outrage that makes us look as petty and parochial as our worst instincts tend to be. (Tall poppy syndrome is absolutely one of our national neuroses). This isn’t good for democracy, but nobody wants to make that case, which is why we’re in the situation we’re in.

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russian missiles hit an apartment building and a medical centre in Kharkiv early Wednesday; Russia claims it was precision-targeting a building housing “foreign fighters” that included French mercenaries. Ukrainian forces also downed19 out of 20 drones targeting Odesa. The fighting has intensified near Bakhmut, as Russian forces are making more offensive assaults.

https://twitter.com/ukraine_world/status/1747574419994648962

Good reads:

  • Justin Trudeau was in Saint John, New Brunswick, to announce more housing agreements; he again defended his Jamaican vacation as the ethics committee met.
  • Trudeau also said they are “watching carefully” the ICJ deliberations on the South African allegations of genocide in Israel.
  • Trudeau has tasked senior officials to figure out how Canada can support Israeli officials in investigating sexual violence as part of Hamas’ October 7th attack.
  • Trudeau will be in Iqaluit today to sign a devolution agreement with Nunavut.
  • Sean Fraser told a Toronto audience that cities who want Housing Accelerator Funds can’t keep exclusionary zoning, and challenged them to be more flexible.
  • Marc Miller says that his department has processed the applications for 144 Palestinians from Gaza to come to Canada, contingent upon biometric verification.
  • Senior Government Sources™ say that Miller will be announcing a cap on the number of international student visas, and reducing the volume of them.
  • Mary Ng is touring Prairie provinces, talking to Ukrainian business and community leaders to point out the Conservatives voting against Ukraine’s interests.
  • Dominic LeBlanc says that Canada is considering if the Houthis should be added to the list of terrorist entities given the recent attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
  • The CEBA loan deadline is today, and the government says they won’t make any further extensions than the ones already offered.
  • A report points out that 4.4 million uninsured Canadians won’t be covered by the federal dental benefit because their income is too high.
  • Far-right groups are using lawfare tactics to fight schools and school boards when it comes to opposing materials including sexual orientation and gender identity.
  • King Charles III will be in hospital next week for treatment for an enlarged prostate, which we are assured is benign.
  • The five MPs currently visiting the West Bank are concerned about the reports of settler violence toward Palestinians.
  • Dr. Carolyn Bennett is now formally appointed the new ambassador to Denmark.
  • A National Post columnist is going to be one of Poilievre’s “star candidates” in the next election, amid some other pandemic-era “stars.”
  • Ontario is planning the next expansion of private health clinics, while ignoring that they cost the system more money to operate.
  • While the premier of Nunavut is asking for $250 million for more housing, the mayor of Iqaluit says that they also need to expand their water reservoir.
  • Critics say an oil industry report in Alberta’s figure of $33 billion in environmental liabilities is far too low of an estimate given the scope of the orphan well problem.
  • Kevin Carmichael delves into the inflation data, and why we’re in the hard part to get to the “last mile” before it’s successfully tamed.
  • Susan Delacourt talks to Trudeau about the American election, and while he won’t take any particular side acknowledges the challenges of Trump over Biden.

Odds and Ends:

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