In my time in Parliament, I have become a little infamous among my fellow MPs and staff for being a history buff. An interesting fact from the Second World War: during the London Blitz, when bombs were falling all around the city, the British Parliament continued to sit.
In contrast, today, during the pandemic crisis, the Liberals have sought every opportunity to suspend our democratic institutions. At the very outset of the pandemic, they tried to introduce a bill that would have given them effectively unlimited power to pass laws and spend money for up to two years in the future without having to seek approval from Parliament. This attempted coup was stopped only because the Conservative Party blocked it.
Justin Trudeau seems to think he’s some sort of monarch. He appears to be blissfully unaware that he did not, in fact, win the last election. He lost the popular vote and holds only a weak minority government. Yet, every day, he emerges from his castle, avoids Parliament and ensures that 100 per cent of the focus is on him.
His contempt for Parliament knows no bounds. The Liberals recently, with the support of the NDP, suspended Parliament until September. Just as we are beginning to emerge from the pandemic restrictions, Liberals and NDP have deprived Canadians of their democratic voice.
To add insult to injury, the Liberals and NDP have conspired to produce a sham or façade of Parliament to fool Canadians into thinking that it is still operating. What you see on TV these days is not Parliament but rather the Special Committee on Health on Coronavirus. This committee cannot pass laws and cannot present or pass a formal budget. The tools by which the Opposition can hold the government to account are extremely curtailed.
In the face of the largest deficit in Canadian history – over $150 billion in just the last few months – the Liberals restricted Opposition examination and debate of these spending measures to just four hours.
Going back into my history buff mode, you might remember from high school that the Magna Carta – the basis of parliamentary democracy – was originally a document that forbade the king from spending money without approval of Parliament. In that context, the Liberals’ actions are unconstitutional on the deepest, oldest and most fundamental level.
There is no precedent and no excuse for this. Canadians should be outraged. Justin Trudeau is counting on the confusion of the pandemic to seize unilateral control of the country, which he did not earn in the election. We need to fight back. Call, email and find other pandemic-safe ways to protest. We cannot let him get away with this.
MP Tom Lukiwski
Suite 1 – 54 Stadacona St. W.
Moose Jaw, Sask.
S6H 1Z1
Phone: 306.527.9942
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the position of this publication.
