Canadian Government Moves to Add Seats to House
Proposed Legislation to Expand Seats in Parliament Nearly Ready
Sep 25, 2009
Legislation that would add seats in the Canadian Parliament to the fastest growing provinces – Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia – is in its final stages of preparation by Democratic Reform Minister Steven Fletcher. The legislation could be ready as early as this fall or in the new year, according to a governmental official speaking to the Globe and Mail.
The proposed legislation would add seats to the suburban and exurban areas surrounding Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver – the largest areas of growth in the country. If passed, the political clout of the younger and multi-ethnic voters who inhabit these ridings would increase significantly, potentially changing the political landscape.
Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia are critically underrepresented in the legislature. For example, the average riding in Prince Edward Island has 35,000 voters. The average riding in Alberta has 127,000 voters. It takes about four votes in Calgary to equal one vote in Prince Edward Island. If all ridings were equal, each would have about 108,000 voters.
Allocation of the Proposed Seats
Alberta is poised to pick up around six seats, which would undoubtedly go to the Conservatives. British Columbia could be allocated up to seven seats; the Tories have an advantage in the province, with the Liberals being quite competitive. The map is expected to expand from 308 seats to around 340, giving Ontario approximately 19-21 seats. As the Liberals and Tories are both competitive in the GTA, an expanded Ontario could help both parties. However, as the current government is only 12 seats away from a majority, this legislation has the potential to be a political win for the Tories.
Implications of House Reform
On the whole, adding so many seats in Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia could be the solution to the country’s run of unstable minority governments.
The party that would lose from an expanded Parliament is the Bloc. With their support base solely in Quebec, more seats for the Conservatives and Liberals would mean a decline in their voting power in the House. The Bloc is expected to try to prevent the reform.
Barriers to Reallocation of the Seats in Parliament
There are some obvious concerns in adding seats to the House, namely those of racism-driven attempts to prevent reform and the loss of influence in rural areas and smaller provinces. Because ethnic minority and immigrant populations heavily populate the proposed ridings, there are concerns that some would not want their voting power to increase, and would therefore attempt to block reform.
The Fletcher legislation marks the second attempt in recent memory to reform the seat allocation in the House. Last year, legislation was halted in its tracks after Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty expressed concerns that his province was underrepresented – it stood to gain only 10 seats from that legislation. If the Parliament fails to pass the legislation before the next election, Statistics Canada will give the numbers from the 2011 census to the Chief Electoral Officer, who will then assign new seats as warranted.
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