Canadians Cold Towards Harper

After reading a survey from EVOS, it appears that support for other parties has only increased, while the support for the Conservatives has dropped. What could this mean for the next election? Harper still has the majority of the vote, at around 30%, but Michael Ignatieff and the Liberals are hot on his heels at around 27%. Jack Layton is not all that far behind, and the coolest thing I saw was that Elizabeth May beat out the Bloc Quebecois! It was only by a percent, but I think it is a step in the right direction! That party is always taking steps forward and it would be cool to see them possibly win a riding in the coming future! I have met the party leader, Elizabeth May before, and she is really nice! I wish her nothing but success!

Well there is a couple numbers for you. Food for thought, and what do YOU think is going to happen in the next election?

Hope you have enjoyed the Parliament unit!

Ilanna

WHHHHAAAATTT?

So ...just to set the record straight, the Conservalocialist party does not promote private Health care! An article was published that preached the Conservalocialist did and that that's why they may not blend with government. But in actuality the Conservalocialist party said that its the choice of the individual to decide if they want to seek private of public! The "C" party does not insist on private! ..... just listen to their slogan

"It's your Choice!" 

The Events of February 21st, 2011

February 21st, 2011 was a big day in Parliament, with all of the proposed bills being written into law by the Governor General. The bills dealt with energy, healthcare, education and trade. I'm happy to say that I am very pleased with the new laws. I think that the new free trade protocol is a great idea! As it was mentioned, Canada is a very large country with a variety of resources and I think it can be a very good thing for us! Another thing I was excited about was the passing of the private members bill I submitted. I recently was deleting my old e-mails and I found and e-mail I had sent to Prime Minister Paul Martin when I was ten years old, in 2004. It was concerning the seal hunt and I have been passionate about banning it for a long time. Some of the pictures you see are horrific! It was great to see my bill have such overwhelming support from Parliament!

That is all for now!

Ilanna

The Speaker

The Speaker is a very important person in Parliament. It is their job to keep order in Parliament. As well they present the items that will be brought up in the House. When a member wants to speak, they must wait until the Speaker calls upon them to present their ideas. Ultimately the Speaker keeps order in the House. Without them members would be yelling at each other, fighting...etc!

The Speaker also has administrative responsibilities. The Parliament of Canada Act says that the Speaker controls all matters around administration and financial policies that tend to house of commons

As if you couldn't already see how special the Speaker is, when the House is called to Senate , the Speaker leads the procession and attend to the queen or governor general at the beginning.

Did I mention the speaker has a side kick!

STV (Single Transferrable Vote)

Since the topic came up in class, here is a closer view at the single transferrable vote!

• It is a voting system based on proportional representation (which we covered in class) and preferential voting as well.
• Votes are initially allocated to the most preferred candidate. After a candidate has been elected or eliminated, the unused votes are transferred according to the preferences stated by the voter
• A "pro" for this system is that it eliminates wasted votes
• This is achieved by using multi-seat constituencies (we all know what that word means!)
• Votes are transferred to eligibile candidates. Without STV, those votes would be wasted on sure losers or winners.

Example: In a constitunency that has many voters who vote Conservative, a voter who votes Green will not lose his/her vote. That vote will be transferred to help another Green candidate. Otherwise, the vote will be wasted because the Conservatives will have the clear majority regardless.


How does this relate to us?
In BC, STV was recommended for provincial elections by the BC Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform.

But why haven't I seen or heard about it since?

Well, in the 2005 referendum, it received 57.69% support and passed in 77 of 79 electoral districts.

That sounds like enough, but was it?

No. The Liberal government set a 60% requirement.

That's it?

Not quite. There was a second referendum in May of 2009. You may have seen advertising or heard about it during that time. It was defeated again, 60.91% to 39.09%. Read more about that here:
second referendum on May 12th 2009


Today, forms of STV are used in Australia, Iceland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and many others!

So what do you guys think? Was STV a good idea or not? Would you have voted for it if you were eligibile to vote?

That's all for now, see you in class!

Ilanna

    Who and WHAT is the Governor General? Thats exactly what i was going to ask you! Sounds like such an important title, but how big of a deal can they be?....A REALLY BIG ONE!
You see Canada became a country at confederation (thats when their is a union of countries with some or more political power put into a central authority) in 1867.  Canada government is a constitutional monarchy. This means that the Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state, but the head of government is the Prime Minister.


    ANYWAYS your probably wondering..."How does this have anything to do with the Governor General?" Well The GG represents the Queen! The responsibilities of the Government have changed over time. King George IV changed the powers in 1947 when he signed the letters patent. They “authorize and empower Our Governor General, with the advice of Our Privy Council for Canada or any members thereof or individually, as the case requires, to exercise all powers and authorities lawfully belonging to Us in respect of Canada”. The Governor General is Canada's representative when dealing with countries abroad, or when receiving guests at Rideau Hall or Citadelle of Quebec.


The Governor General gives out awards when people do goos stuff like show excellence, or valour...intense people :) 


Now your thinking.."hmmm thats so cool but who's our GG?"


WELL ITS David Johnston.


ya dont worry that name means nothing to me either! UNITL I RESEARCHED HIM!
Long story short he's a big deal that has something to do with McGill, Queens University, and more. He was sworn in on October 1st, 2010 and is the 28th Governor General since confederation.


tha tha thats all fokes!


Jessica 

The Throne speech was read today! Parliament talked about 4 main ministries it would address in the near future. Environment, health care, education, and business. They plan to put a large focus on the green movement by investing in companies who are developing green technologies. they also mentioned lowering taxes for those companies to encourage more businesses. They are going to try to improve the public school system through creating equality between races. their business plan is to not be in business! they are encouraging crown corps and not waning to be a part of and any business. They will be funding health care so it is available to all. All the bills are being put fourth tomorrow but once again with a majority gov't their shouldn't be a problem.