I think they thought I wanted to speak about the decision by the government to shutter our Office. I’m not really sure. I did not want to talk about the decision. That proverbial horse had already left the barn. I did not want to talk about what Government did but I did want to talk about how Government was doing things.
I was concerned about the erosion of our democracy and about the health of our Legislature having seen its workings from the inside. My concerns are only exacerbated today a number months later.
When my second and by my guiding legislation last term as Ontario’s Child Advocate ended I asked for an exit interview. As a former Officer of the Legislature I asked to meet with the Speaker of the Legislature and the Clerk of the Legislature.
In the exit interview I told the Clerk and Speaker about the following concerns;
The use of the notwithstanding clause by a government in order to get its way in intervening in another level of government’s election. This without any real public discussion of the issues involved
The erosion of the role of the elected Member Of Provincial Parliament (MPP) who are told particularly in government what to think and what to do. Including instructions about when to give standing ovations to their Premier and Ministers
The erosion of the Legislatures Committee structure. Committee hearings held if at all with little notice and for a few hours not even days. MPPs given no time to prepare for the subject of hearings at hand and no time to build towards collaboration and cooperation with each other.
The erosion of decorum in the Legislature. Temper tantrums as acceptable behaviour in the Legislature. Questions in question period purposefully and systematically simply ignored by Government. Not even pretence to engagement in the process of the Legislature.
The erosion of decorum in public. The government purposefully misleading the public (not just spin) and down right promulgation of mistruths ( see the Baber Report on Autism Services or recently the musings of the Minister of Education on the labour strife with Teachers)
Threats to service providers receiving funds from government to not just go along but publicly support government positions or suffer.
The erosion of the public appointment process where friends and acquaintances are appointed by government without due process or transparency. The Legislative all Party Committee responsible for public appointments simply by passed.
The establishment of a government run TV station presenting the news that’s fit to present from the government’s perspective circumventing the “Fifth Estate”. Attempting to ignore the media with scorn and contempt. The media being another vital institution of our democracy. Government members ordered from the Premiers Office to create videos about everything from beer in corner stores to gas pump stickers to happy holidays all with key message instructions.
A general disrespect by government for procedures of the Legislative Assembly which were at first thought to be a matter of inexperience but now I believe are understood as a matter of government tactics and strategy. This starts with a lack of openness and communication between the Government and other actors in the Legislature. The new normal. The refusal to release publicly mandate letters. Even in the face of a decision by the Privacy Commissioner that these letters should be released the government has responded by fighting that decision in court
They listened. After I was done and yes I know I can go on I knew I had been preaching. I had the strong belief I had been preaching to the converted.
I believe that the Speaker and the Clerk are responsible for leading the protection of the Legislature as the key institution of our democracy. I believe our elected MPPs are responsible for ensuring that our democracy thrives. If we are involved in “protecting what matters most” ,as our government says these days,I suggest we add in no particular order “democracy” to the list containing “the environment ” and “children”. Those three things matter most.
I suggested that an all Party Standing Committee of MPPs be struck with a goal to strengthen the processes of the Legislature and protect democracy. Since then I have thought that we bring back retired veteran former Clerk of the Legislature Deb Deller (she is gasping now seeing her name in print) to support the Committee. She knows more about the workings of the Legislature warts and all than any Ontarian.
I believe that many many MPPs would agree with me that the institutions of our democracy are in decay.
When I worked with Ontario’s most marginalized young people over the past 30 plus years I often found that when they spoke about the services they received in terms of their lived experience their criticisms no matter how difficult to hear were nothing that was not already known. Once they named their world and spoke about what was wrong it was time for them to have the space to speak about what good would look like and then finally how they thought ,together , we could get to good. That’s where we can be at today. I believe our MPPs can name the challenge and threats eroding democracy. They can come together with all of us to articulate the Legislature they wish to see. They can develop together with us a road map forward. I believe in our MPPs. They can do this given the chance. They must do this.
The erosion of the institutions which protect the rights and interests of the people is alarming and makes the worry of “creeping facism” felt around the world entirely appropriate. We can argue definitions. Is it “facism” or “authoritarianism” we are moving towards? What we do know is that our democracy is weakening. I’m no intellectual as witnessed by this column but I did go to university. I am not a member of “the elite”. I like to think of myself as a poor man in a wealthier man’s shirt to paraphrase Bruce Springsteen. So save the rhetoric and pushback about “intellectual liberals who don’t care about what’s important to the people”
Last week a Cabinet Minister in public descended upon a private citizen. Allegedly she said to that citizen “do you know who I am? I am your Minister. You are a fucking piece of shit. You are a fucking loser”. Ministers by virtue of their title carry positional authority. When they use that authority to demean, belittle, threaten ,for whatever reason , without sanction, we have crossed a line. Much of the discussion of this incident has centred on the individual Minister and individual citizen involved. In my mind it is not about the Minister. At this point she is irrelevant as a politician. It is about our democracy. We are in danger of losing it in a flood of dangerous right wing populism. We must collectively stem the tide. We can do this.
