Press Room

OTTAWA, ONTARIO, February 11, 2003 – Speaking at the Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs leadership forum on the state of Canadian democracy, the Honourable Stéphane Dion, President of the Privy Council and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, stated that "our democracy remains a work in progress" but that at the same time, "it is experiencing some noticeable problems ..., such as lower voter turnout or lack of confidence in elected officials, can also be seen in other democracies." To that end, he cited academic research indicating that "the satisfaction level with the way democracy works is average in Canada relative to other countries."

Since democracies have varied institutions, in terms of both their political regime (parliamentary or presidential) and the electoral system, "we must avoid any ill-considered expectations of institutional change," the Minister emphasized.

So we need to work to improve our institutions, without concluding too hastily that they are outmoded and need to be replaced, Mr. Dion maintained, addressing different aspects of the subject in turn: leadership in democracy, party discipline, the electoral system and low voter turnout.

The Minister underlined that our current institutional framework, a combination of parliamentary government and the first-past-the-post electoral system, most often positions our first ministers to exercise strong leadership. However, Mr. Dion noted the following elements:

• there is no trend toward the concentration of power over time: "I find nothing ... that can convince me that the Prime Minister and his immediate entourage ... have acquired more power under Jean Chrétien than they had under Brian Mulroney or Pierre Elliott Trudeau;"

• in our decentralized federation, our federal government has fewer areas of jurisdiction than do the national governments of other countries;

• political leadership is fully compatible with democracy so long as it is exercised while respecting the law, transparency and consultation.

With regard to party discipline, Mr. Dion emphasized that "disenchantment with elected officials is not any higher in the United States," a "country where there is little or no party discipline." While consideration may be given to increasing the number of free votes in Canada, we must bear in mind that "there is some validity to the principle that candidates who are elected as a team should work as a team," the Minister maintained.

As for our electoral system, despite the weaknesses the Minister listed, it cannot be blamed for such phenomena as lower voter turnout or lack of confidence in politics: such problems also exist in countries with a proportional electoral system, the Minister underlined.

Moreover, the leadership that our electoral system affords our two orders of government is quite useful in a decentralized federation where so many government initiatives require intergovernmental negotiation: "Most of the countries that have retained proportional representation have only a single parliament that really matters," the Minister remarked.

Finally, the Minister examined lower voter turnout. In Canada, this decline has been found to be statistically verifiable only among young people, a phenomenon also occurring in the United States, Mr. Dion emphasized. "What is it then with our ability – or inability – to connect with these young people?" asked Mr. Dion, expressing the wish that at least as much reflection be given to the transmission of civic values as to the improvement of institutions.

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