Whispering in the Wind (WITW 97) November 11, 2015
A
Final Word, the Trudeau Landslide
Canadians continue to be in awe of the October 19
election results and the dramatic change that occurred. Political pundits and pollsters have analyzed
the election data and have drawn some interesting conclusions that might be a
surprise to some who are convinced that the election was only about getting rid
of Stephen Harper. Actually Mr. Harper
and the Conservative Party were able to retain much of their conservative support. It was the increased voter turnout that did
the Conservatives in – in the 2011 election voter turnout was at 61.1 percent.
In the 2015 election the turnout was 68.5 percent – the 7 percent increase in
voter turnout was by-in-large anti-Harper, anti-Conservative. As to the demise of Thomas Mulcair and the
NDP, it was all about the niqab issue in Quebec. According to pollsters there was a 10 percent
shift in voter preference away from the NDP.
The NDP ended up losing 45 seats in Quebec with the Liberals gaining 32
seats. As to Mr. Trudeau’s success, I am
convinced that Mr. Trudeau was able to maintain a positive, up-beat, consensus-building
image throughout the campaign, while his opponents projected fear, hesitation and
caution. In the end, Mr. Trudeau’s approach
motivated about seven percent of the population (who didn’t vote in the 2011
election), to vote.
Trudeau’s
Way Forward
In the aftermath of the October 19th election, Prime
Minister Trudeau is seriously trying to present a government that is more
transparent and accountable. Mr.
Trudeau’s list of promises is long and ambitious but he has already shown that
he is willing to take risks (i.e. his Cabinet appointments). As to the prime minister’s adventures on the
international front, his four meetings scheduled will be both revealing and
telling on what’s in store for Canada under a Trudeau administration. And to top it all up, Canada’s 42nd
Parliament will resume sitting on December 3 with the Governor General reading
the Speech from the Throne on December 4.
Justin
Trudeau Announces His Cabinet
November 4th saw Justin Trudeau sworn in as Canada’s 23rd
prime minister and a new government structure with a 30 member Cabinet. Aside from the normal juggling of
bureaucratic responsibilities because there are fewer ministries, Mr. Trudeau
established something that could haunt him in the future appointments – the 50
percent male / female quota system.
While it is commendable to have a goal of gender parity, there is a
question of having a merit based Cabinet?
When questioned about his decision, Mr. Trudeau glibly responded with “Because
it’s 2015”. My advice to Mr. Trudeau, stop
the terse rhetoric and explain your position.
Mr.
Trudeau’s Debut on the World Stage
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is confident that he has a clear
and convincing mandate to change how government business is done in Ottawa and
the rest of Canada. In the next month,
Mr. Trudeau will be on the “big” stage meeting the “big” players of the
world. Mr. Trudeau’s international agenda
is unfolding very quickly, is it too much for the “new” prime minister?
November
15-16, 2015 – the G20 Summit Conference in Antalya, Turkey; likely
topics on the agenda: trade and finance; refugee crisis; climate change.
November
16-18, 2015 – Mr. Trudeau flies immediately to the
Philippines for the Asia- Pacific
Economic Co-operation (APEC) Summit, Manila, Philippines. Likely topics on the agenda: trade and finance; the Trans-Pacific
Partnership; climate change.
November
27-29, 2015 – Commonwealth Summit in Fort St. Angelo, Malta,
likely topics on the agenda: climate
change; trade and finance; refugee crisis.
(Queen Elizabeth II, Duke of
Edinburgh, Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall are expected to attend).
November
30-December 11, 2015 – United Nations Climate Change Conference in
Paris, France – apparently Mr. Trudeau will only attend part of the conference.
No comments:
Post a Comment