Call to Action by Persons Concerned about MS

I receive many emails from local voters who ask me about specific issues that are important to them. Often, there is a pattern because a non-profit or advocacy organization has provided a well-drafted format and many concerned citizens follow the format and send me an email. This is the first in a series of blogs. I try to send a reply to each person but, in case things get busy, I am blogging my response.

The Green Party of Canada has a bold and innovative plan to re-imagine the future of Canadians. The Plan has ten main areas of focus. I have copied four headings from the standardized email (in bold) and included my comments.

The emails usually ask about reform to EI Sickness Benefits and to the Canada Disability Benefit. There have been recommendations in Canada since the March Report in the 1940’s and the Macdonald Commission in the 1960’s to avoid Canadians falling through the gaps of our social safety net. The solution is to ensure a livable income or Guaranteed Livable Income, as it is now called.

Make work…work

The Green Party of Canada supports moving to a Guaranteed Living Income. Practical recommendations are at the GPC web-site at: https://www.greenparty.ca/en/reimagining-our-future/renegotiate-our-social-contract. In addition, as part of the GPC’s focus on Re-Imagining a Safer, Fairer World, we have a strategy for a different kind of economic policy, specifically one which guarantees a good job for anyone who can work. Rather than an economic system which always seeks unlimited growth, our goal is to maximize human (and environmental) health and well-being). Check this out on the same web-page.

I was a self-employment advisor for Lutherwood in a program for entrepreneurship for persons with disability. Through this experience, I am well aware of the disincentives to employment or self-employment by the current system which seems less about offering opportunities than preserving an unjust system built on stigma and barriers.

Make ends meet

The Guaranteed Living Income would more equitably and efficiently allow for support for episodic disability.

Make access a reality

At the GPC web-site we Re-imagine Our Future. One of the ten areas reminds Canadians that “we are all in this together” with emphasis on taking care of each other. An essential way to take care of each other is through a National Pharmacare system. The Green Party sees enormous financial benefits in bulk buying through such a national system thereby lowering the over-all cost of health care while improving accessibility to important treatment. Check this out at: https://www.greenparty.ca/en/reimagining-our-future/remember-we-are-all-in-this-together

The Green Party also advocates for National Standards and quality for long-term care with national guidelines for staffing and high quality of care and for more options for housing. This is outlined at the remember-we-are-all-in-this-together link, noted above.

In addition, the Green Party has strategies for safe and affordable housing, with more funding for co-op, supportive and community-developed local housing. This is part of our focus on Local and on Resilience.

Check it out at: https://www.greenparty.ca/en/reimagining-our-future/resilience-is-local-and-made-in-canada

Make MS research a priority

One of the basic priorities for the Green Party is Evidence-Based Decision Making and the development of evidence-based policy making and increased socio-demographic data collection. Greens advocate for government funded research to be available to all Canadians. This is outlined at: https://www.greenparty.ca/en/reimagining-our-future/require-evidence-based-decision-making

I believe an over-riding aspect of the emails like this one is the desire for consultation with respect to policy reform. The Green Party is committed to grass roots democracy with our platform based on input from members and based on science, research and the lived experience of Canadians. As an elected member of Parliament, I would consult with the community of self-advocates living with MS.

I hope this blog helps voters who are concerned about MS.

In Defence of Minority Government in a Democracy

24 August 202124 August 2021 michelebraniff Cambridge, Election 2021, Waterloo Region electoral reform, minority

I am running with the Green Party of Canada to initiate government policies to protect the planet and to create conditions for resilient people, families and communities. For me, it is all about environmental and social justice and democratic rights, responsibilities and values. As I have been campaigning and speaking to voters, many have questioned the safety of calling an election during a pandemic and expressed concern about how this fits with our Canadian democratic values.

The 43rd Parliament was the result of democracy at work: in 2019, Canadians voted so that no one party had a majority of the seats in Parliament. The Liberals won only 157 seats. The Samara Centre for Democracy explained in their December 2019 blog:

Minority governments often compel parties to work together, as the leading party must cooperate with Members of opposing parties in order to push forth their legislative agenda. Contrary to popular beliefs, some of the most productive governments in history have been minority governments. For example, the Canadian healthcare system was brought into place by a minority government.

Before and through the challenges of the COVID19 pandemic, the parties all worked together: there was compromise and collaboration. The 43rd Parliament was a functioning minority government with non-partisan support during a pandemic. Perhaps, history will regard this success as another example among “some of the most productive governments in history”. I would have liked to see: more leadership on the climate crisis; stronger reconciliation with Indigenous people; and a Green Recovery plan from the pandemic. Nevertheless, the government was functioning, as well as could be expected with Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister and a Liberal caucus.
Usually, a minority government ends because the governing party is not able to maintain the confidence of the House of Parliament. That is not what happened in August, 2021. The Liberals did not lose the confidence of Parliament on any policy, new laws or a budget. Parliament was functioning. Arguably, it was functioning extremely well in difficult conditions and because of shared concern for the safety of Canadians. In my view, it was functioning better as a minority government than the previous majority 2015 Liberal government.

In the midst of a pandemic, while the country is at risk of a fourth wave, Justin Trudeau decided to dissolve Parliament and call for an election. Canadians voted in 2019 so that no one party had a clear majority.

In the current “first-past-the-post system”, there are often “false majorities”, by which a minority of votes generates sufficient seats in the legislature for a majority government. In 2019, although the voting results were skewed, Canadians nevertheless did not agree to give any one party a majority of seats. If Canadians are not in agreement about leadership, the responsibility of the elected representatives is to work together, across party lines to develop consensus.

The Green Party advocates for electoral reform, including proportional representation; increased respect in Parliamentary debate; and greater non-partisan collaboration. A minority government requires non-partisan collaboration.

If politics in Canada were based on values, leaders would prioritize keeping Canadians safe during a pandemic. If politics were value-based, leaders would respect the decision of the 2019 election. If Canadians elect a minority government, there is a responsibility on the members of Parliament and especially the Prime Minister to work with the mandate from the electorate and resist the temptation to “shop” for a preferred mandate.
Vote for democracy: vote Braniff and the Green Party of Canada! Vote for a healthy planet, a resilient green economy and for social justice in Canada!