Parliament
Four rookie “Orange Wave” NDP MPs to watch in the new Parliament
By now, the media has turned Ruth Ellen Brosseau’s name into a punch line. Brosseau is, of course, the Ottawa-pub-managing, Las Vegas-visiting, limited-French-speaking 27-year-old single mom who rode the NDP’s wave through Quebec into an MP job in Ottawa, despite having never visited her primarily francophone riding. But Brosseau isn’t the only NDP rookie surprised… More »
This45: Andrew Potter on democracy researcher Alison Loat
Canadians are giving up on their political system. Voting participation is at historic lows; the number of people who vote for the winning party is now routinely outpaced by the number who don’t vote at all. Most young people don’t vote—63 percent of people under age 24 didn’t cast a ballot in 2008—and that bodes… More »
This45: Graham F. Scott on NDP health critic Megan Leslie
For this special anniversary issue, we asked 45 alumni of This Magazine to tell us about the individuals and organizations who are doing the most exciting, creative, and important work in politics, activism, art, and more. Many chose young up-and-comers; others chose seasoned vets who never lost their passion for new ideas and approaches. But… More »
Harper's parliamentary reforms could solve some problems—and cause others
The Harper government has placed a bill before Parliament that would alter the formula for how seats are redistributed following the census. It would give Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia more seats in the House of Commons; naturally, Quebec and the Atlantic Canadian provinces are upset with this change as it diminishes their relative influence… More »
Another reason for voting reform: Parliament needs women
Canada has shockingly few female legislators. Our electoral system is broken. Voting reform could fix both problems at once. One Thursday last spring, an Angolan MP named Faustina Fernandes Inglês de Almeida Alves addressed an assembly at United Nations Headquarters in New York City. Those present—members of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the UN Division for… More »
From a Toronto basement, Citizen Lab fights tyranny online
As the internet becomes a global battlefield, a clutch of Canadian programmers are subverting oppressive regimes, aiding online dissidents, and mapping the murky new world of digital geopolitics The Dalai Lama is charged with watching over Buddhist tradition, but on March 29, 2009 The New York Times revealed a shadowy presence was secretly watching him,… More »
Which party leader uses social media better?
Separating the hax0rs from the n00bs in Canada’s parliament Part of Barack Obama’s victory came on the back of a grassroots campaign that effectively used the internet to collect supporters and funds. Among social-media-savvy politicians, the president is The Man. While Obama might be down with the kids today, have any Canadian leaders managed to… More »
How to rehabilitate the NDP
With its exclusive fixation on winning more seats, the NDP has sacrificed the opportunity to build a truly progressive movement. On the 75th anniversary of the CCF, James Laxer argues that to save the present, we need to remember the past [This article was originally published in the July-August 2008 issue of This Magazine. We’ve… More »
How the Green Party is skewing Canadian elections
Another B.C. election has passed, and the Liberals under Premier Gordon Campbell were able to hold on to power, but it was hard to tell at times which party stood where on the issues and the political spectrum. The environment was a central issue in this election, but it played out in a way that… More »
Minority report: Comparing Lester B. Pearson and Jean Chrétien
Long before June’s federal election results were in, the outcome seemed inevitable: despite Paul Martin’s best attempts at dragging his heels in calling an election to try and garner more support among voters, he would convene Canada’s first minority government in 25 years. Clearly, it was not what Martin had hoped for. But for the… More »
