[fvc-wat-disc] [fvc-wat-announce] Thomas Mulclair supports MMPR

[Anita]

We have had a similar discussion on our national chapters email list recently, about Mulcair's position on this and his statements over time. There are FVC supporters in the NDP who really think he's going to select some process that actually gets it done. There are other FVC supporters in the NDP who think he will follow the path of every other politician and either bury it, or more likely, use process to kill it.

I have little faith in the NDP. I want to believe in them. Look forward to my orange crush friends proving me wrong. Even one provincial precedent would give me hope. 

It's not that I don't think it won't still be in their platform come 2015, I just think it will might take more political will to actually implement than I see coming from Mulcair or any other NDP member I've talked to. It's nobody's top priority except ours (this is where our work to engage the public becomes so important). If I had waited 50 years to get into power to implement my values and agenda for Canada (with PR being only one hundreds of things, and not something NDP voters at that moment are screaming for), somehow making sure I introduced a PR system so I would then be relegated at the next election to only the 30 something percent of seats I actually earned would not be the top priority in my agenda. 

When Dennis Pilon came down to talk to our FVC group in Waterloo in the spring he told us there is basically no precedent in the history of the democratic world of a single party government unilaterally changing the voting system when it would potentially result in fewer seats for them.

When Mulcair responded to the FVC questionairre during the leadership race, Wayne clarified his statement. He told Wayne:

"What Mulcair committed to during the leadership race, and I spoke to him to clarify that's what he really meant, is that he will regard the next federal election as a referendum on proportional representation, and if he gets a majority government, he will change the voting system, period."

However, a lifelong diehard NDP FVC supporter asked him about this at a meeting last week, and got the impression Mulcair now shares the idea that there may have to be some kind of national referendum. 

A referendum which none of the party strategists for the bigger parties really wants to see succeed, with a mainstream media like there is in Canada (probably worse than the situation in tiny NZ, where the "no" campaign was led by the chairman of Telecom who invested millions) does not bode well. If we're talking a 2 part referendum (at least there's hope with that format, anyway - I used to be more enthusiastic), what are the chances both part 1 and 2 will be done within the time one party is in office with a majority, so we could have a new system for the next election in 2019, as Mulcair said to Wayne? 

If we get a Liberal-NDP coalition out of the next government without a pre-election cooperation agreement, and one or both of the parties are not sincerely committed to PR beforehand, the parties can collude to make sure nothing happens or nothing gets finished, then blame each other.

If we do get an NDP single party majority in 2015, I really look forward to the NDP proving me wrong. In any case, to cover all possibilities, we need to keep the pressure for PR on all the opposition parties, so they are on as close to the same page on PR as possible in 2015. If the Liberals don't take the leap to PR (there's hope there) at least a joint commitment by both parties to a Royal Commission and immediate implementation of recommendations is something to aim for. Nathan Cullen is speaking this week at the FVC National Capital Region AGM on how to build such a multi-party campaign for PR, so I'll be interested to hear what he has to say.

Anita
----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Jon Bathmaker 
  To: fvc-wat-announce at listserv.thinkers.org 
  Sent: Tuesday, September 18, 2012 9:16 PM
  Subject: [fvc-wat-announce] Thomas Mulclair supports MMPR


  Hi All;

  I was on the NDP national call in tonight in which Thom Mulclair fielded questions from many of the 10K people on the call.  That was the whole call, people asked questions, he answered them.

  Someone asked about PR and whether the NDP would enact it once they attained power.  TM replied something like "I am a strong believer in Mixed Member Proportional Representation but it would have to be enacted after a lot of consultation with the people after forming an NDP Government."

  So, unless he's lying, an NDP government would likely lead to MMPR.

  Best,
  Jon Bathmaker (a.k.a. Mr. Sharon Sommerville)
  "The Cons has proved that people are willing to accept a lot lower standard of quality than you might have thought."
   


  -- 
  Best,
  JB
  "McDonald's has proved that people are willing to accept a lot lower standard of quality than you might have thought." 
   




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