Bill 7 – Election Statutes Amendment Act, 2010
March 17, 2010
The Chair: The hon. Member for Calgary-Fish Creek.
Mrs. Forsyth: Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you for the opportunity to speak to Bill 7, the Election Statutes Amendment Act,2010. One thing that all parties in this Assembly can agree to is the need to modernize how elections are governed. We can also agree that the rules need to be clear, they need to be enforceable, and they need to be nonpartisan. As I begin, I want to point out the parts of Bill 7 that the Wildrose caucus is able to support, and then I can move on to some of our concerns. First, I believe it is important that the Chief Electoral Officer is the one who appoints returning officers, not the party in power. This change is important. Second, Bill 7 changes the way enumerators are appointed, and when you also look at the safeguards regarding the electoral list that Bill 7 hopes to put in place, these two combined changes are a very positive step. The quality of our elections will succeed or fail based upon the quality of our voters lists, and we need to make sure that we have the very best people to help us with the development of these lists. Third, Bill 7 broadens the investigative powers of the Chief Electoral Officer. This, too, is an important step forward although these powers and enforcement capabilities should go further. It is also important for Elections Alberta to open up the advance voting process further. People make so many decisions based on convenience and ease of access to goods or services. Let’s make it as convenient as possible.
There are a number of other changes that Bill 7 proposes, Mr. Chair, and I will not go into all of them. I do, however, think it is important to focus the government’s attention on areas that will cause Albertans a great deal of concern. In a lot of areas the government did the bare minimum, and the bare minimum is not what Albertans want.
As the Member for Airdrie-Chestermere will touch on, Albertans have been asking for fixed election dates for years. The government believes it should have special rights to call an election when it is politically convenient. As you know, Mr. Chair, municipalities in Alberta have fixed election dates. On the third Monday of October every third year voters go to the polls to elect their local government. This has been extremely effective in Alberta and other jurisdictions because voters know exactly when a municipal election will take place. It is disappointing that this government has not implemented fixed election dates, and it must be part of any changes to our election acts.
It seems strange that this government has not been willing to create a truly independent election office that is fully capable of enforcing the rules. It also seems strange that the new Chief Electoral Officer thinks his role is to simply enforce the rules and run elections but not encourage people to vote. In terms of accountability, Mr. Chair, it is the position of our caucus that all reports of the Chief Electoral Officer should come to the Assembly. These reports should be presented to you and then given to the elected Assembly. We are responsible for setting the rules that govern elections, and the final accountability for the effectiveness of Alberta’s election system ultimately falls on each of us. If the Chief Electoral Officer is not made directly accountable to this Assembly, then this government, or any government for that matter, can decide to remove someone from this important position as they choose.
Mr. Chair, why didn’t the government get it right and make sure that the Chief Electoral Officer put new rules in place for scrutineers or to allow for fines and/or penalties to be imposed for breaches of this act?
Finally, Mr. Chair, an issue that the Member for Calgary-Glenmore has more recent experience with, which is the formation of new parties and donations to new parties. While the government may say that people have the freedom to set up new parties and to voice their opposition, the reality is that the current political and party system makes it very difficult for people to do that. Why does Bill 7 not include a provision that allows people to make a contribution towards the formation of a new political party, and once that party is recognized and formed, why can’t a tax receipt be issued? People can make contributions towards charities and notfor- profit organizations in advance of their formation, and once the organization is legally incorporated and recognized, the appropriate receipts can be issued for tax purposes. Why is this government so afraid to give people the ability to form political parties that more closely represent their views?
Why does this government ignore democracy by making it virtually impossible for opposition parties to succeed in this province? If this government is truly conservative, then it shouldn’t be afraid of the marketplace or afraid of new ideas. If the rules are reasonable and allow people to get together, then they will rise or fall because voters will not give them money. Without support from voters, they will not have traction. Let voters decide, Mr. Chair, not obscure rules or unreasonable barriers.
As members of the committee looking at the electoral boundaries adjustments have noted, they were given orders to increase the number of MLAs. They were not given the ability to ask whether or not more MLAs were needed, whether fewer were needed, or if the solution was simple, to redistribute the boundaries. More MLAs is not the answer to better representation. I work hard for the people of Calgary-Fish Creek, Mr. Chair, and not once – not once – have I heard people in my constituency say that they want more MLAs. Never. I would be willing to wager that if we looked at reducing the number of MLAs, then there would be massive public support.
In closing, Mr. Chair, we are all here to represent the people we serve. Bill 7 does bring forward some good ideas to improve our election acts and laws, but the government falls short on the changes needed to overhaul our election system. We have laid out the improvements that we believe are important and will provide more openness, more accountability, and more transparency to our election process.
Mr. Chair, a quote that I like from a candidate at the University of Waterloo is about freedom: freedom is when the people can speak; democracy is when the government listens. We’re willing to work with this government to improve Bill 7 to be more representative of what constituents and voters are telling us. We can only hope that the government is willing to listen and work with us. Albertans deserve nothing less.
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