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THE POSITIVE CONSTITUTIONAL RELATIONSHIP
BETWEEN THE COURTS AND THE PARLIAMENT OF CANADA
Summary by: Sharen Frewing
Past President, BC Chapter
REAL Women of Canada
Talk by Senator Anne Cools
Senate of Canada
Our beloved, stalwart Senator Anne Cools delivered
on her promise to come out to BC anytime we asked, coming
for one day to be one of the speakers at our national conference.
She had such a wealth of information to impart that the forty-five
minute time-slot only allowed us a glimpse of the depth of
this woman’s knowledge and passion for the family in
Canada. The material deserved at least a half day or full
day seminar.
Senator Cools is a constitutional expert.
She has been tireless in fighting for the dignity and protection
of the family in Canada, and for Parliament and the Courts
to maintain their proper mandates and boundaries. Thus, she
and former Liberal MP Roger Gallaway became interveners in
the definition of marriage issue at the Supreme Court, asking
the Court not to touch what was properly a parliamentary issue.
Senator Cools outlined in her talk the development in law
and practice which led to the separation of the judiciary
from Parliament – boundaries that are now becoming blurred.
The Senator is very concerned about the courts
improperly taking over the responsibility of Parliament to
make laws. The checks and balances of the Constitution have
gone by the wayside and there are now no constitutional checks
on the power of the Prime Minister. Unfortunately, Parliamentarians
rarely consult the Senators, who are supposed to be the Parliamentary
experts. Nor do the MPs do their job in monitoring the spending
of the higher level civil servants (mandarins) in their departments.
Thus, we have fiascos like the Firearm Bill with its massive,
out-of-control spending on the Gun Registry. This was a bill
that the public didn’t want in the first place, but which
the Liberal government was determined to implement. The budget
for it went from $65 million to the present $2 billion! The
Treasury Board was warned by the Senate about the escalating
expenditures of the firearm registry when its costs were a
“mere” $900 million.
Senator Anne noted that we no longer even
have a common language with which to speak to Parliament.
We are now into “messaging”, the hallmark of which
is the misuse of words and terms of speech. Thus we can no
longer even debate important issues, or any issues, as the
language used is meant to obscure meaning, rather than make
meaning clear.
Senator Cools is a staunch supporter and admirer
of REAL Women. Her advice to us is:
Knock on friendly MPs’ doors;
Know the laws and be there speaking in an informed way;
Take the abuse when it comes, as it inevitably will;
Write letters to the editor. Develop this skill and use it;
Find a way to get government to focus on the issues that are
important to us.
The Senator warned that the battle is getting
harder. The same-sex marriage issue will return and we must
use the time wisely.
Senator Cools is a wonderful role model: She
works hard, educates herself on the issues, is not afraid
to speak her mind, is not cowed or side-tracked by abuse,
uses clear speech to debate issues and stands immovable on
principles. May her tribe increase!
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