Electoral Reform Manipulation By McGinty

Grits 'ramming’ through Ont. electoral changes, critics claim
April Lindgren
CanWest News Service
Tuesday, April 17, 2007

TORONTO - Ontario’s opposition parties are crying foul over the Liberal government’s decision to limit debate on legislation authorizing this fall’s referendum on the province’s electoral system.
“It’s just unbelievable that we’re talking about democratic renewal and they’re choosing to ram something through when there seems to be lots of time to continue with the debate,” Conservative Leader John Tory said Tuesday just before the Liberals used their majority to push through final reading of the Electoral System Referendum Act.
The act authorizes the holding of a referendum this fall on an alternative electoral system recently endorsed by a citizen’s assembly. The legislation requires that for the proposed new system of mixed proportional representation to be adopted, it would have to win support from 60 per cent of all votes cast provincewide plus a simple majority of more than 50 per cent of votes case in at least 64 provincial ridings.
The act also allows for the establishment of regulations governing referendum campaign finances.
NDP house leader Peter Kormos accused the Liberals of trying to “clear the legislative slate” so if they run into political trouble they can cut short a legislative session now scheduled to last until the end of June.
“To time allocate (this bill), which is the cornerstone of the government’s democratic reform proposal, is uber irony,” he said.
“There have only been two days of third reading debate. There have only been 11 hours as I recall of second reading debate. That’s not very substantial for a bill that is so significant.”
Democratic Renewal Minister Marie Bountrogianni said the government wanted to ensure the bill is passed before the current session ends.
“We need (it) to be passed in order to do some of the public education campaign,” said Bountrogianni, who rejected suggestions Tuesday’s rushed passage of Bill 155 is bad optics.
“I think people want us to get things done.”
In addition to voting in the provincial election on Oct. 10, Ontarians will be asked to choose between retaining the current first-past-the-post system or adopting mixed proportional representation similar to what is now in place in countries such as Germany and New Zealand.
Under the proposed new system, voters will select 90 legislature members from ridings in the same way they now choose their representatives. These elected officials would make up 70 per cent of the seats in the legislature. The remaining 30 per cent - 29 seats - would be awarded to candidates selected from lists assembled by the eligible parties.
These legislature members would be used to adjust the number of seats each party has in the legislature to reflect each party’s share of the popular vote.
CanWest News Service