LISTEN: Segal on the State of the Senate and Canadian Cons

[Oscar]

LISTEN: Hugh Segal on the State of the Senate and Canadian Conservatism

[ http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/20 ... servatism/ ]

Wednesday, December 18, 2013 | Categories: Episodes , Feature Interview , Politics

Hugh Segal has been offside on the Senate scandal, willing to support issues his conservative colleagues might avoid and reject ideas they might champion. But after working with - and for - a long list of Conservative leaders, Hugh Segal is politely unapologetic. And now he's leaving.

Senator Hugh Segal on politics, conservatives and Conservative Politics

"My Canada is the kind of country where trade unions and free collective bargaining makes our economy stronger and Canada a better place. The right of working men and women to unionize was at the root of Tory policy less then 5 years after Confederation. This is not some new thing that came rolling in with Franklin Delano Roosevelt. This has been part of who we are as Canadians from the very beginning". - Senator Hugh Segal

Though his version doesn't always mesh with the prevailing wisdom, Hugh Segal knows the history of Canadian conservatism better than almost anyone. Over the course of his career, Senator Segal championed labour rights, a guaranteed income supplement and a strong social safety net ... all part of what he sees as Canada's unique 150-year-old Tory tradition.

Senator Segal helped shaped that history himself as an advisor to Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, Conservative Party Leader Robert Stanfield and Ontario Premier Bill Davis ... and he has written about it in numerous books.

Late last week, Hugh Segal announced his retirement from the Senate next summer to become the next Master at Massey College at the University of Toronto.

Conservative Senator Hugh Segal was our Toronto studio.

- - - -

Have thoughts you want to share on what Senator Hugh Segal had to say in our discussion?

Tweet us @thecurrentcbc. Follow us on Facebook. Or e-mail us through our website. Call us toll-free at 1 877 287 7366. And as always if you missed anything on The Current, grab a podcast.

This segment was produced by The Current's Gord Westmacott.


Related Links:

[ http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/episode/20 ... servatism/ ]

Conservative Senator leaving Red Chamber for Massey College l - The Globe & Mail

Pamela Wallin's treatment 'completely unfair,' Senate colleague says - CBC News

Hugh Segal, Tory Senator, Takes Parting Shot At Harper Over 'Fair Wages' - The Huffington Post

Hugh Segal: An elected Senate is the only answer - National Post

Why Guaranteeing the Poor an Income Will Save Us All In the End - The Huffington Post

[Oscar]

Canadian Senate’s slide into irrelevance: Watchdog role has gradually eroded, expert says

[ http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canad ... xpert-says ]

July 24, 2015 Tristin Hopper Email: thopper@nationalpost.com

Canadian senators put on suits and show up to work. They hold question periods. They vote, give speeches, argue and deliver lengthy commemorations to dead colleagues.

But while they certainly look busy for their $142,400 annual salary, it’s safe to say that lately, the Upper Chamber hasn’t really been doing anything of consequence.

“The Senate hasn’t really been playing much of a role as a watchdog,” said David Mitchell, president of the Ottawa-based Public Policy Forum.

Shrouded by scandal and reviled by virtually the entire House of Commons, the Conservative-dominated Senate has lately had almost no effect on new legislation — aside from delays.

- -- - - -SNIP - - - -

Ned Franks, a constitutional scholar and professor emeritus at Queen’s University, says there is no lack of talent in the Senate and “could be used much better.”

Similar to Britain’s House of Lords, he suggests that senators be selected by an independent committee, thus preventing the chamber from being stacked with patronage appointments. This is also the view of National Post founder Conrad Black, also a Canadian-born member of the House of Lords.

In public writings, Black has said that if Canada simply put better senators in its Upper Chamber, we could reap the benefits of an institution free from the “barnyard noises and other forms of infantilism of most elected chambers.”