Inside Politics

SenateWatch: An idle and slightly mischievous thought ...

by Kady O'Malley Posted: December 29, 2009 2:40 PM Last Updated: December 29, 2009 3:37 PM
If any two of the five Independents, Progressive Conservatives and, er, Senators of No Political Alignment joined the Liberal caucus before a new session begins, the result would be a perfect tie between the two main parties, with 51 seats each -- and, presumably, a 50/50 split of committee seats. Wouldn't that be interesting? 

That is, of course, if the prime minister does go ahead and prorogues Parliament simply to reset committee membership, the details of which, like the Commons, is not set out in the Standing Orders -- or, in this case, the Rules of the Senate -- but hammered out through negotiations between the leaders of the government and official opposition caucuses.  

What's not clear - or, at least, not clear to me - is whether the formula is based on a strict two-party system, or if the fact that the Conservatives will soon hold a plurality, but not a majority in the Upper House will be taken into consideration. After all, Elaine McCoy -- a Progressive Conservative -- sits on two committees, as does Independent Jean-Claude Rivest and the Non-Aligned But For Some Reason Not Considered Independent Anne Cools. (It's also worth noting that Senate committee chairs have full voting privileges, unlike in the House, when they only do so in the event of a tie.) 

So, when divvying up the seats at committee, does the Senate follow the same logic as the House: no majority on committee unless a party also has a majority in the Chamber? That doesn't seem to have been the practice in the past - at least, from what I can glean from the transcripts of the Selection committee, which only go back to 1996 online, but when it comes to the will of a House of Parliament, that doesn't always take precedence. After all, it is the Senate itself which will ultimately decide how to proceed. 

All of which is to say that the razor-thin plurality that the Conservatives are on the verge of seizing in the Senate may make for some fascinating, if arcane, procedural debates -- especially if there's a Speech from the Throne in the short- to medium-term future. 


Tags: blackberry jungle, senate shenanigans