Category: Politics/NDP

The short answer to the question posed in this blog post title is: Yes.

And it's not just an academic question. When Parliament resumes on March 3, there are going to be several confidence votes right out of the gate. First, the Speech from the Throne will be delivered on March 3 and the budget will be delivered on March 4. Votes on the budget are automaticlly votes of confidence. I'm sure I need remind no readers of this blog that a government that loses a vote of confidence in the House of Commons must, in almost all circumstances, ask the Governor General to dissolve Parliament and call a general election. There will be several votes stemming from the throne speech that are, by tradition but not automatically, votes of confidence. And then there may be votes of confidence over motions the House has already passed requiring the government to produce documents connected to an investigation into the treatment of prisoners captured by Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Until last fall, NDP MPs could be counted on to enthusiastically vote against the government on any confidence vote, eager for a general election.

But now, their leader, Jack Layton, has prostate cancer and is undergoing treatment for the disease. Neither he nor aides are disclosing details of the treatment but most cancer survivors will say that, whether its surgery or drug therapies, beating cancer can leave one feeling weak and in need of time for rest and recovery.

Today, in a scrum following a meeting Layton had with Prime Minister Stephen Harper about the budget, I asked Layton if the battle he's fighting will weaken his or his party's resolve to vote down the government, if necessary, in a confidence vote. His answer:

“No. It will make no difference to the enthusiasm with which our party carries forward our mission which is to change the old politics that we've seen for so many years and try and establish a new direction for the country.”

NDP Leader Jack Layton delivered this statement in the House of Commons this afternoon:

Monsieur le Président, les citoyens nomment un député à cette Chambre pour représenter leurs valeurs de coopération et de respect mutuel. Nous assistons régulièrement à des écarts de comportement du députés qui déshonorent la confiance que les gens ont placé en nous.

During question period we have been witnessing undeniably sexist heckling from members of the government side. This abuse is growing hotter, it is growing more frequent and there is more bullying. I can hear some of it now, except in this case it is not targeting women as it all too often does in this chamber. It targets women representing opposition parties, all the opposition parties in the House.

L'intimidation sexiste n'est aucunement justifiable au Canada et ne peut en aucun cas être tolérée dans notre Parlement.

As a parliamentarian, as a man, a father, a grandfather, I call on the government's leadership to really get a grip on its members and set a higher standard.

Peggy Nash, (left) who was briefly the MP for the Toronto riding of Parkdale-High Park, ousting high-profile Liberal Sam Bulte in the 2006 election before losing in 2008 to Liberal Gerard Kennedy, has been elected as the new president of the federal New Democratic Party. Nash succeeds Alberta Anne McGrath, who is currently serving as NDP Leader Jack Layton's chief of staff. Nash was elected at the NDP's convention this weekend in Halifax.

Here is the press release from the party:

HALIFAX – Peggy Nash was elected President of the New Democratic Party of Canada today, vowing to dedicate herself to helping build a real political alternative for recession-weary Canadians.   

“We couldn’t be happier that Peggy Nash has been elected President,” said New Democrat leader Jack Layton. “I know Peggy well, she was in our caucus and continues to be a valued part of the team. I have absolute confidence that she will bring energy, innovation and leadership to the role.”

Nash has a long history with the New Democrats. She was the Member for Parkdale-High Park (2006-2008) and, as industry critic, pressed the government to reject – for the first time in more than 20 years – the foreign takeover of a major Canadian company “As Canadians long for a vision of a better tomorrow, we need to focus on what unites us,” Nash told the packed hall of delegates. “How do we create a green recovery with new kinds of jobs for young people? How do we build a sustainable economy? What sectors do we want to see developed? These are our challenges. I believe we can meet them.”

“I know that Canada needs the New Democratic Party to be strong, credible and progressive. You have my commitment to organize and build like never before.” Nash is a Canadian Auto Workers negotiator and the first woman union representative in major auto negotiations in North America. She is the recipient of two awards from the Sierra Club of Canada and speaks English, French and Spanish.

Here's an interesting item from The Washington Times, notable not only because we have a Canadian politician trying to lend a hand to the world's most popular politician but also, I think, because the Times' correspondent here seems to be working under the impression that the U.S. Democrats are close cousins of Canada's “New Democrats.” Canadian readers, of course, will know that the U.S. Democratic Party is probably somewhere between the Canadian Conservative and Liberal parties if you looked at a policy-by-policy basis and may, in fact, be to the right of the Canadian Conservative Party. (On health care, alone, Canadian Conservatives, because they support the Canadian system of universal single-payer health care would put them to the left of the Democrats).

For non-Canadian readers of this blog, Canada's New Democrats have a history of arriving at policy positions from the left side of the political spectrum and are traditional more left than the federal Liberals.

I'm not sure where Canadian New Democrats would fit in the U.S. political spectrum but something tells me they've probably not got anything like Jack Layton and Olivia Chow!

Canadian Democrats supportive of their country’s universal health care program are soliciting donations to send their leader to Washington to meet with “Obama Democrats” to strategize about implementing a similar system.

A fundraising appeal mailed to supporters from Anne McGrath, president of Canada’s New Democrats, says: “There’s a battle over universal health care happening in the United States — and your New Democrats are a part of it. I hope you will lend your support.”

An image of an economy-class plane ticket from Ottawa to Washington for New Democrat Leader Jack Layton, who is running to become Prime Minister, accompanies the mailer. In the bottom left corner it says: “SUPPORT OBAMA’S FIGHT FOR UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE. PROTECT MEDICARE BACK IN CANADA.”

You could buy a card and let Hallmark say it for you or if you're a political junkie, you could let a politician voice your affection for mom. As I'm a political junkie, here's NDP Leader Jack Layton:

Today I’d like to do what so many Canadians are doing: wish my mother a very Happy Mother’s Day. My mother Doris is an incredible lady – she’s the rock of our family and a huge part of who I am today. I’d also like to say Happy Mother’s Day to my mother-in-law, Ho Sze Chow, who welcomed me into her family with open arms.

Mother’s Day is an important day because there are so few times that we truly stop and appreciate just how much our mothers do, each and every day. This Mother’s Day, let’s promise not to wait another full year before we say, “Thanks, Mom.”

This Mother’s Day let’s recommit to achieving progress that can make a difference for mothers: creating a national child care program; ensuring EI benefits for mothers fired when just back from maternity leave; and supporting primary care-givers.

On behalf of all New Democrats, I wish every mother in Canada the very best – Happy Mother’s Day.   

It is Brad Lavigne's first day in his new job as national director of the New Democratic Party of Canada and he spent part of it explaining what, on the face of it, might look to be disappointing party fundraising results for the first quarter of 2009. Those numbers, as well as the numbers for every federal party, were released today by Elections Canada.

For the first three months of the year, the federal New Democrats raised $595,611 from about 10,000 contributors.

That compares to $1.75 million raised in the fourth quarter of 2008 and $1.12 million raised in the same quarter a year ago.

“We knew this in advance and this is a short-term phenomenon,” Lavigne told me. “We are on pace to pay off our debt — a small debt fro the election and we are healthy enough to run an election campaign at any given moment.”

The numbers looked soft, Lavigne said, because the federal party stayed on the sidelines for most of the quarter in some of its most important regions of the country.

In B.C. and Nova Scotia, where provincial wings of the party are either fighting or about to fight a provincial election, the federal fundraisers stayed out of the way so that the provincial parties could fill up their war chests. In Ontario and in Saskatchewan, provincial parties were busy choosing a new leader, a process which taxes the financial and volunteer resources for the New Democrat base. Recognizing that, the federal party did not do any aggressive fundraising there.

“Added to all this is a recession,” Lavigne said. “The recession is hurting. There's no doubt about that.”

And, just as the economy is expected to show strong growth towards the back half of this year, Lavigne said he expects his party's fundraising campaign to show some improvement in the third and fourth quarters of 2009.

Missed this from yesterday, but NDP Leader Jack Layton announced a slight tweak to his shadow cabinet lineup, a tweak that was forced upon him by the departure of Dawn Black. Black quit as an MP to run for the NDP in BC. She had been Layton's Defence Critic and, in my opinion, she had been a very effective critic, often digging up important information on her file and forcing the government to respond to the NDP's defence agenda. That, in my view, is the definition of an effective critic: You're able to force the government to talk about your file from time to time. Dawn did that very well.

Now it's up to St. John's East MP Jack Harris to fill Dawn's shoes. Harris, like Black, was in the House of Commons a long time ago, lost, and then was re-elected under Layton's leadership. Layton has named him as National Defence Critic.

Harris will give keep his job as Critic for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and for the Atlantic Gateway but will give up his job as Public Safety Critic to Vancouver area MP Don Davies. Davies now has a full plate, as he is and will continue to be Critic for Metro Vancouver, Multiculturalism, and Western Economic Diversification.