- Letter to the Liberal Party Executive Regarding Electing a New Leader

Here is the E-mail to Doug Ferguson and Greg Fergus, of the Liberal Executive in the morning of 5 Dec. regarding this issue. I have yet to receive a response.

. . .

We do not know what Harper and the Governor General talked about and whether the Governor General simply followed Harper’s advise or whether she put some kind of conditions on it.

Simply following Harper’s advise, of course, suggest strongly to me, that if Harper is defeated in a vote of non-confidence at the end of January, the Governor General will follow his advise to dissolve Parliament and call an election.

Also, if she simply followed his advise to prorogue without any kind of qualification to him, then what is to stop him from advising another prorogueing of parliament in January, assuming he calls to reconvene Parliament.

If the Governor General put conditions like “You get one chance to do something, if you come to me at the end of January after a vote of non-confidence I will invite the Opposition to form a government” then all Canadians ought to be told. For obvious reasons Harper would be highly motivated to keep this secret.

I would demand that he give an accurate and substantively complete outline of what was said, except I have no confidence in him to do so in a truthful manner.


Electing a New Leader of the Liberal Party Immediately

I am sure that many people feel that if there is a showdown with Harper and the Conservatives, if Dion is leader of the Liberal party it will be a disaster. This is especially true if there is an election called in late January.

If Dion remains leader, there will, obviously, be a very strong motivation for Liberal MP’s to abstain from any confidence vote until May when the new leader is elected. . That would be a path disastrous to our country and the Liberal Party.


For these reasons, and as suggested by David Herle, yesterday, we must have a new leader by the time Parliament is reconvenes at the end of January.

It is not feasible to move up the convention to mid January, obviously.

That is why I am proposing that the Liberal Party hold a general vote, by all members. This, it is submitted, could, especially given modern technology, quite feasible to arrange by mid January. If a Canada wide general election can be held within 35 days of being called, so too, can a Liberal Party election.

If the Liberal Party Constitution cannot be satisfied within this kind of time frame; then, certainly upon the vote being tallied Mr. Dion could step down as leader and the Executive appoint the person elected as “interim” leader until that person, man or woman, can be formally confirmed as leader in satisfaction of the Liberal Party Constitution. [Clarification: The mechanism for this - the choices in this vote would be from the existing candidates in the leadership race and when one is “elected” in this fashion, the other would withdraw from the race. Then, the convention would be an “Acclimation”.]

I would certainly be quite willing to pass up my Christmas and News Years to assist in this.

Below (or refer to my Blog: http://cicblog.com/comments.html) is a copy of my comment on Broadbent’s Statements in the G&M this morning (I also submitted (as of this E-mail it hasn’t appeared) a portion (in bold) to the CTV article “Huge job losses in Ont. push up unemployment rate”, CTV.ca, Dec. 5 2008


W. Lloyd MacIlquham, B.Sc., M.Sc., J.D.
Barrister and Solicitor


*****************
Ed Broadbent has always belonged to a party I have never been able to support.

However, I cannot recall any time the Party I support (Liberal) or any other party questioned his sincerity, dedication and integrity.

Never have I heard, in my recollection, anyone whether publicly or in private discussion accuse him of the things that he has laid out in this commentary, let alone present the facts to support such accusations.

Ed Braodbent can stand up proudly as to how he has served our country over many years. Previously as a fierce competitor in the House of Commons and now as a Statesman for Canada. The NDP can also point to a proud History (despite my not agreeing with them all the time).

I say to you, Harper can not! And; the Conservative Party can not!

Now to add more support to Mr.Braodbent’s statements:

71,000 jobs lost in November, 66,000 in Ontario.

Now we know why Harper went to the Governor General yesterday as opposed to today or Monday!

The likelihood of this being a co-incidence is to me remote. Harper had to have know these facts before he went to advise the Governor General.

Harper has refused to discuss what was said.

So, we can only wonder if he advised her that he next day the job rates for November would be announced and be so strikingly brutal.

I would demand that he give an accurate and substantively complete outline of what was said, except I have no confidence in him to do so in a truthful manner.

What a sad commentary on the person who calls himself ‘Canada’s Prime Minister’.

God save us, God save Canada


Lloyd MacIlquham