Possibly More Than Most Of Us Need To Know BUT...

...if you are headed out the door for your daily visit to the legion or the local mall you might want to have a few zingers to throw into the conversation.

How our Parliament stacks up against its British and U.S. counterparts

Deirdre Mcmurdy

Citizen Special

Monday, September 08, 2008

As public statements from members of the Conservative party caucus go, the one released by Saskatchewan MP Dave Batters on Sept. 2 was exceptionally candid and emotional.

In it, he announced that he would not be seeking re-election because of his ongoing battle with anxiety and depression and his addiction to prescription drugs.

While his circumstances may be singularly dramatic, Mr. Batters is by no means alone in his decision to withdraw from political life. Forty-three of the 308 current members of Parliament -- roughly 14 per cent -- have made the same decision not to seek re-election this fall. (Nine of those have already been replaced in recent byelections.)

Even by the standards of the private sector, where talent has become a global commodity and CEOs now typically have a tenure of just three to five years, that's one heck of a turnover rate -- whether it reflects personal reasons, disillusionment with successive minority governments, the grind of the commute between Ottawa and a home riding, or the natural attrition of aging baby boomers.

It also means that there will be a significant number of novice MPs when the next Parliament is formed.

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