The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
In Canadian politics, especially today, there is a thin line between what is real and what is not. An example is the dissension created by the discussions and proposals over Employment Insurance. In its latest budget, the Harper government acceded to the demands of the former coalition and increased the number of weeks of eligibility Ð at a hefty cost to the taxpayer and the deficit. More recently, the government announced increased improvements to the plan with schemes to train laid-off workers for new jobs, and job-sharing where workers could share a job. The plan appears to be working as several plants have adopted it. It was also announced that when the unemployment figures rise in an area of the country, the number of work hours needed for acceptance shrinks. The government does not, however, intend to change the system, which varies from region to region. The unreality, adopted by the opposition, is to accept the NDP's private member's bill to decrease the minimum hours on the job needed to collect EI, to 360 across the country. The NDP claim they have been after this change for years and blame the former Liberal government for changing the system so the number of hours needed to qualify varies according to unemployment rates across the country. The change is estimated to cost over $2 billion. Where would the government get this money? Why, increasing the deficit of course! The Liberals are accepting the proposal to embarrass the government even though they do not agree that the 360-hour rule should be permanent. What is more unreal is that a private member's bill, even if it is passed, does not have to be accepted by the government if there is a cost involved. It will simply not happen as a private member's bill because third- and fourth-place parties cannot propose money bills unless they are acceptable to the government. Talk about a useless debate! It certainly will not force an election, which could have happened if the official opposition Liberals had proposed the bill. * * * Jack Layton headed to Washington to White House officials and members of Congress about the benefits of Canadian Medicare, supposedly to bolster Obama's proposals to revamp health care in America. He was there to attack the private, insurance-based medical system and to promote the advantages of the Canadian system. He is battling powerful interests who spend millions in advertising and in lobbying Congress each year. Just read an American newspaper and note the full-page ads promoting the various hospitals. Many Canadians think our system is superior, as it is available to all citizens and paid for by taxes, but it does have its problems. Most provincial systems have a burdensome and expensive bureaucracy that sucks funds out of the system, and are totally dependent on the federal treasury to pay for yearly increased costs. Then of course there are the huge waiting lists for many operations and procedures. This is not common in the U.S. as long as people and insurance companies can pay, but the costs are huge. Many stories are written and told about about Canadian medical insurance companies flying people home on private jets, complete with a doctor, nurse and attendants, to avoid the costs of American hospitals. Yet, as mentioned, the system is vast and powerful, so do not expect any rapid improvements in the American system, even though the new President is popular. A quick change is simply unreal. * * * One of the most surprising proposals by the Harper government is the laudable legislation to allow victims of terrorism to sue in Canadian courts those individuals, organizations and even foreign states who commit and support terrorism. This could prove interesting as the terrorists obviously would not pay, but organizations that support them and countries such as Saudi Arabia could have their assets seized, at least in theory. The proposed law will be very popular with families of terrorism victims, but we will have to see if it has any realistic effect. What it may do is stop or at least hinder those terrorist organizations that raise funds in our country, and may provide at least some justice for the victims. Roger's Right Corner runs Wednesdays.
