Letter from Constituent

January 29, 2010

Dear Mr. Joe Preston,

I am a loyal citizen to the Queen and to this great land of Canada.  I respect and uphold the values of this country as given forth by our Constitution and subsequent laws and enactments.  I may not be a recognized political major, but I, with pride, educate myself as best I can with the policies and procedures of the Canadian Political System.

I am writing this letter in response to the prorogation of parliament, among other things which I feel necessary to voice as an informed citizen.
First off, let me say that I find it absolutely absurd that anyone in Canada, most of all the honourable members of the opposition, find the process of prorogation to be “undemocratic.”  To say so is to make a mockery of our Constitution.  Prorogation exists as a way to reset the current sitting of parliament, and is quite necessary in times of a minority government.

People have also likened our Prime Minister to a dictator, or in the heritage of this country, to a ruthless King, citing both instances of prorogation as a way to rule without consent of the people.  I must say to this, refer back to simple history and fact.  A Prime Minister cannot prorogue parliament.  The order must be given by Royal Decree, either by the Queen herself, or by her viceregal, The Right Honourable Governor General.  The Prime Minister can make a request, but by her authority, the Governor General does not have to uphold that request.

On the topic of history and fact:  Throughout the history of Canada, parliament has prorogued 105 times, by all governing parties.   The 19th Canadian Parliament had 6 sessions, under a Liberal Majority.  The 24th Canadian Parliament under a Conservative Majority sat 6 months on, and prorogued for 6 months.  Even the 30th Canadian Parliament under yet again another Liberal Majority prorogued every 12 months.

As an Ontarian, I must also make note of another situation in this Province’s past.  In the 1990’s we had a Majority NDP government.  The leader of this party is now a prominent member of the Federal Liberal Party and is at the forefront of attacking the current Federal Government.  During the time the NDP’s sat in the Ontario Legislature, they prorogued three times, and for a much longer period than the current Federal Tory Government.  Why?  They wanted to buy some time because their government was in ruins.  I’ve talked with many people about this and they say that the NDP were justified because they had a majority government.  Pardon me, but if you are afraid to face question period with a majority, you really shouldn’t be passing judgement now.

I feel I must state that I am not a Conservative.  Nor am I a Liberal.  I do not support the Green Party, the NDP, or the Bloc-Quebecois.  I vote every election after I have become educated on the issues proposed, and the way the incumbent has governed in the past.  What I will say though, is I don’t agree with voting a person out without giving them a reasonable chance.  If we played that card in real life, we wouldn’t get much done.

The second issue I’d like to bring up is the way the government has handled itself over the run of the global financial crisis.  I’d like to applaud the Conservative Government for bringing Canada out of this recession faster than other world leading economies.  I’d like to give thumbs down to the opposition parties for whining about all issues concerning the Economic Action Plan.

Day in and day out I hear the opposition complain that the current government has run a deficit when it said it wouldn’t.  Let’s check into reality, and stop playing school yard games.  The recession was Global, not just isolated to our own country.  When the economy started to go south, the opposition parties tried to bring down parliament with a coalition.  In order to help our country get out of the recession faster, the Conservatives wanted to spend money to help us out.  But it wasn’t enough. The opposition wanted the government to spend more.  Go more into debt.  What is a minority government to do in this situation?  Spend, or risk another election.  They spent on advice of the opposition parties.  The same parties that now complain we are in a deficit.

To conclude, I look forward to parliament resuming on March 3rd.  When it does, I hope all parties can focus on the issues ahead, and not spend more tax payer money bickering on issues that can’t be changed.  Unless all parties feel like revamping our constitution, move on.

Thank You.

Wm Ward MacKenzie
49 Dieppe Drive
St. Thomas, ON
N5R 4G6