MPs, as surely everyone must know by now, were supposed to have been back in town Monday in the House of Commons debating the weighty issues of the day. But Prime Minister Stephen Harper prorogued Parliament in December and so, MPs won't be back until March. The opposition — and hundreds of thousands of Canadians — are angry about this.
Opposition MPs are making a concerted effort this week to be in Ottawa and do things MPs normally do here which is meet, talk and try to get some headlines.
Conservative MPs, though, were unusually active Monday as well doing what government MPs do well: Hand out money.
On Monday, government MPs issued 44 press releases announcing a combined total of $48 million in federal funding.
Of those, 28 announcements were for projects that will benefit almost exclusively a riding held by a Conservative MP:
| Seniors housing | Kamloops | BC | $7,750,000 |
| Program to prevent homelessness | Kamloops | BC | $105,000 |
| Affordable housing for Snuneymuxw and Penticton FN | Penticton | BC | $1,800,000 |
| Improving provincial grazing reserves | Edmonton | AB | $5,925,000 |
| Nova Scotia Agricultural College-Truro | Halifax | NS | $2,400,000 |
| Composites Atlantic Ltd. | Lunenburg | NS | $2,600,000 |
| Child development at North Peace Community Resources Society | Fort St. John | BC | $600,000 |
| RINC: Construction of new multipurpose facility | Forestburg | AB | $1,000,000 |
| Aquatic Life Research Facility | Burlington | ON | $4,600,000 |
| Tamworth Hotel Conversion | Tamworth | ON | $5,000 |
| Affordable Housing Speaker Session | Prince Albert | SK | $1,800 |
| Housing options policy development | Revelstoke | BC | $5,000 |
| Housing strategy workshop | Vernon | BC | $5,000 |
| Housing consultations | Irricana | AB | $5,000 |
| Secondary suites regulation | Williams Lake | BC | $5,000 |
| Workshops on housing | St. Albert | SK | $4,400 |
| Housing forums | Squamish | BC | $1,500 |
| Workshop on housing | Meaford | ON | $5,000 |
| To publish housing success stories | Quebec | QC | $5,000 |
| Housing focus groups | Calgary | AB | $5,000 |
| Guide to renovation | West Vancouver | BC | $5,000 |
| Housing survey | Quesnel | BC | $5,000 |
| Workshops on housing | Abbotsford | BC | $5,000 |
| Housing workshops | West Lincoln | ON | $3,000 |
| Workshops on housing | Abbotsford | BC | $5,000 |
| Housing survey | White Rock | BC | $5,000 |
| Workshop on housing | West Kelowna | BC | $5,000 |
| Prepare manuals on housing | Cardston | AB | $5,000 |
Seven announcements worth about $12.8 million will benefit a riding held by a New Democrat.
| Genome Atlantic | Halifax | NS | $2,800,000 |
| Origin BioMed | Halifax | NS | $3,000,000 |
| Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal National Historic Site conservation project | Montreal | QC | $425,000 |
| Upgrades to Royal B.C. Museum | Victoria | BC | $3,000,000 |
| Developing housing plan | Whitehorse | YK | $5,000 |
| IWK Health Centre | Halifax | NS | $1,800,000 |
| Brain Repair Services at Dalhousie | Halifax | NS | $1,800,000 |
Four worth $4 million will benefit a riding held by a Liberal:
| East Hants Adult Learning Association | Enfield | NS | $45,616 |
| Ocean Nutrition Canada Ltd. | Halifax | NS | $3,000,000 |
| Digital Gateway at Robson Square | Vancouver | BC | $950,000 |
| Housing regulatory changes | Wolfville | NS | $5,000 |
Four worth about $1 million will benefit a riding held by a Bloc Quebecois MP:
| Gas tax transfer | Saint Felix-d'Otis | QC | $249,239 |
| Gas tax transfer | L'Anse Saint-Jean | QC | $283,034 |
| Housing renovations | Naskapi First Nation | QC | $483,000 |
| Workshops on housing | Tadoussac | QC | $4,000 |
The other announcement, worth about $3.3 million is to fund a climate change adaptation strategy for the Fraser River (BC) basin and will benefit ridings held by MPs of more than one party.
Apparently the thinking is that if you act in a cynically manipulative manner CONSISTENTLY, it must be a good thing.
Could this be a more blatant attempt by Harper and the PMO to use the prerogatives of government to hide their contempt for parliament.
Maybe its just me?
David, out of your first 28, 21 are in either Saskatchewan, Alberta or the BC interior. Pretty hard to find an opposition riding in any of these areas. Or are you trying to say that they should get less money because they voted so overwhelmingly for the Tories ?