Tuesday, October 1, 2002
Her Excellency speaks - THE COMMENTARY
By Joseph Planta
VANCOUVER -- The outgoing leader of the New Democratic Party Alexa McDonough, joined the throng of MPs who were summoned from the House of Commons by Black Rod, to watch Her Excellency, the Governor General read the Speech from the Throne in the Senate chamber. Unlike her fellow MPs, Ms. McDonough brought along a plastic box. In her arms she carried a blue recycling bin. Probably, one thought watching her, a prop for the scrums afterwards.
Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson braved the Ottawa showers to stand on her red platform outside the Parliament Buildings to receive not one, but two ‘Royal Salutes’. A couple bars of “God Save The Queen” plus a few of “O Canada”, preceded a 21-gun salute that the former CBC broadcaster took in wearing a black coat that covered the much awaited Yuki Eto outfit she had made for this occasion. Eto, who’s designed gear for Sarah McLachlan and others, has been designing the apparel of the Vice-Regal; and much more than the contents of her Prime Minister’s speech, the press wags were all wondering if we’d see a repeat of the disastrous bathrobe-type deal she wore two years ago. Senator Pat Carney of the great province of British Columbia noted in her memoirs, that Madame Clarkson looked like a “washerwoman”. His Excellency, John Ralston Saul, had a fedora atop his balding head, which CBC anchors Peter Mansbridge and Don Newman complimented. Maybe Mansbridge would don a hat on The National one day?
Speeches from the Throne are the highlight of the pomp and circumstance that adorn State Opening’s of Parliament. Senators, for once, file into their red Senate chamber in full of view of the national press to hear the Governor General read the words as penned by the Prime Minister and his staff in the PMO. It’s a purely political speech that is delivered in a most un-political kind of way. The Crown, though the highest authority in the land, castrated by the actions of bad King John, have since acted as mouthpieces at ceremonies like this. In Great Britain, Her Majesty the Queen reads her government’s Throne Speech, and as Queen of Canada would have been permitted to do so. The last time she did was in 1977, on her Silver Jubilee. To think she could have done it this year as she visits within a weeks time, this her Golden Jubilee. For weeks I’ve been stewing at the fact she wasn’t asked to do so. I read in The Globe and Mail yesterday that she wasn’t asked because Buckingham Palace had let on that Her Majesty would be perfectly satisfied that she not be invited to, since this year has already been a busy year for her and Prince Phillip. In the same article there was word that Tory House Leader Peter McKay had privately written to the PMO saying that Her Majesty should not be used for political purposes. Judging that McKay, a future Tory leader, has a point, I still think however, it would have been nice in this, the Prime Minister’s supposedly last Throne Speech and Her Majesty’s Golden Jubilee year, that she be asked to undertake the task. Whatever the case, what’s done is done.
So what did Her Excellency have to say on behalf of our departing Prime Minister? Well, a lot. Then again Throne Speeches are really promises that may or may not be kept in the fullness of the upcoming sessions of Parliament. This document has been seen as Prime Minister Chrétien’s final laundry list of aspirations before heading for his own proverbial walk in the snow. The promises and plans are large and hopeful. Will there be enough time between now and February 2004 to implement all? Will the Prime Minister’s successor be stuck fulfilling promises that are truly meant to ensure a favourable place for Mr. Chrétien in history?
If Paul Martin is, as everyone now suspects, the next prime minister, will he continue the plan, as articulated yesterday, to double foreign aid by 2010? Will the conservative Mr. Martin be willing to incur deficits to gain brownie points on the world stage, helping out Africans? Will the Canadian people stand for it?
An area where this government has been called upon to act is that of military and defence spending. The PM’s own Senate committee has called for increased funding in the wake of September 11th and in the anticipation of joining the Americans and Brits in attacking Iraq. The exact line as delivered by Madame Clarkson was: “Before the end of this mandate, the government will set out a long-term direction on international and defence policy that reflects our values and interests and ensures that Canada’s military is equipped to fulfil the demands placed upon it.”
Allan Gregg, not a Liberal pollster, said yesterday that he thought of this Throne Speech as Mr. Chrétien moving his government’s direction, in this its dying days, to the left within the Liberal Party. It’s clear that Mr. Martin is on the right of the party, and this lackluster statement is proof positive that Prime Minister Chrétien is taking after his old boss Pierre Trudeau, thus Canada will play no meaningful or great role in future activities like the proposed pre-emptive attack on Iraq. What the Prime Minister is signalling is that there are no promises for increased funding to be made now, and it is highly unlikely that any new funding will be forthcoming at all. That is an insult to the men and women who serve this country proudly considering the embarrassing conditions they are enduring now. This is also the first step in this country’s loss of it’s sovereignty as a nation. We are seeing already how the United States, because of our faltering security conditions, stepping in and taking over the job our men and women cannot do, because for far too long this government and this Prime Minister has turned a blind eye.
In the area of healthcare, as we await the contents of the Royal Commission report of Roy Romanow, the Throne Speech stated that the Prime Minister will in early 2003, convene a First Minister’s conference. That will be interesting since health is a provincial jurisdiction, whilst the feds are always forced to pony up funds, and in the end told to butt the hell out. Ditto for the promises made with regards to urban infrastructure. Municipalities, like health, are provincial jurisdiction, and this promise of implementing a ten-year plan for building infrastructure may get some provincial governments’ upset. Governments like the one in British Columbia, and the one in Ontario have downloaded responsibilities to the cities, without the corresponding funds, thus cities are truly languishing. The provinces can make the claim, should they want the money for themselves (and who wouldn’t), that the feds are stepping into their jurisdiction, thus a Supreme Court case could be launched. Relations between the provinces and the federal government could become frayed, thus Mr. Chrétien’s successor could be in for a hell of a ride.
It’ll be interesting to see come February 2004, just how many promises enumerated today will come to fruition. It will be interesting, no doubt, to see just how Mr. Chrétien’s successor will react and cope with the legacy of his (or her) predecessor.
- 30 -
Questions and comments may be sent to: editor@thecommentary.ca
An archive of Joseph Planta's previous columns can be found by clicking HERE .