~ THIS >>>>> The promise to ban traffic tankers was made by the NDP, the Bloc Quebecois, the Green Party, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who won a majority government in the previous elections.
The controversy lies in the fact that originally, 67 per cent of voting members in the House of Commons, representing the interest of 12 million Canadians, voted in favour of banning oil tanker traffic off the North Coast of B.C.
Critics of the Senate’s recommendation to kill Bill C-48 say it goes against popular will
Critics are questioning how democratic the unelected Senate really is after a committee recommended to nix a bill putting a moratorium on oil tankers in the northwest pacific.
On Wednesday, May 15, five Conservative senators along with independent Alberta senator, Paula Simons, voted against the Bill C-48 by adopting recommendations that the Senate kill the act altogether. The committee is made up of 12 members, creating a 50-50 split.
“It would undermine people’s confidence in the promises that any politician can make,” said Nathan Cullen, Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP.
The promise to ban traffic tankers was made by the NDP, the Bloc Quebecois, the Green Party, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who won a majority government in the previous elections.
“If [Senate’s recommendations] passes, independent senators will feel emboldened that they can do what they want. Big money always had an effect on Canadian politics,” he said.
Cullen is concerned that more independent senators will allow big money to find its way further into the Canadian political system, undermining the mandates that Canadian citizens voted in favour of.
In a press release Senator Dennis Patterson, the Conservative critic for the bill in the Senate said that “Conservative Senators were prepared to engage in constructive debate and propose reasonable amendments to the bill. Unfortunately, Minister [of Transport, Marc] Garneau had made it clear during his recent committee appearance that the Trudeau government is not open to hearing other views in the debate.”
North Coast MLA, Jennifer Rice, said for a long time she had no opinion of the Senate.
“But when I saw the conduct of senators in Prince Rupert recently, it pushed me toward the idea of abolishing Senate,” Rice said.
Rice said that during the first Senate hearing, which took place in Prince Rupert last month, the committee was argumentative as to whether or not the bill was feasible and in their interest.
Concerns over democracy as Senate committee votes to nix oil tanker ban
Critics of the Senate’s recommendation to kill Bill C-48 say it goes against popular will
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