Hon. Donna Dasko: Honourable senators, I appreciated Senator Bellemare’s discussion of omnibus bills, yet here is another interesting section of this bill.

Colleagues, I rise today to speak to Division 13 of Bill C-19, the budget implementation act, which advances the Senate modernization agenda initiated by this government in 2016 of moving toward a more independent Senate. It includes amendments to the Parliament of Canada Act and other changes.

Division 13 recognizes the steps that have been taken toward independence in our upper chamber and reinforces this direction by making key changes: changing the annual additional allowances for Senate leadership positions, and requiring that leaders of all recognized groups in the Senate are to be consulted on the appointment of certain officers and agents of Parliament.

Colleagues, as we know, these amendments are not new. They were initially introduced as Bill S-4 in the Senate last year; again as Bill S-2 after the 2021 election; then in the other place as Bill C-7; and then were incorporated by the government into this bill, the budget implementation act. They follow from significant rule changes within the Senate since 2016 to recognize groups other than the government and official opposition.

Many of our colleagues have worked hard to achieve these changes. I want to thank all Senate leaders — in particular, our leaders Senator Woo and Senator Saint-Germain — for the hard work they have done over the years, as well as Senator Harder and Senator Gold for taking us to this point.

My goal today is to speak briefly about the evolving Senate and about how Canadians view our upper chamber.

During my 30-year career in the public opinion business, I have had the opportunity to study, analyze and consult Canadians on the many proposals advanced over the years to achieve Senate reform.

In 1987, the Meech Lake Accord included in a short list of provisions a clause giving the provinces the ability to submit names to the Prime Minister to fill Senate spots. That accord died in 1990.

In 1992, the Charlottetown Accord included in its much longer list of provisions clauses to implement a “Triple-E” Senate — a Senate that would be elected, equal and effective. That accord died on the heels of a national referendum that failed that year.

In 2011, Prime Minister Harper introduced legislation with term limits for senators and proposals to allow the provinces to hold Senate elections. That reform also died when the Supreme Court ruled in the 2014 reference that such changes would require constitutional amendments.

Mr. Harper knew then, as we still know now, how difficult it is to change the Constitution. In fact, a recent Environics poll shows that only 35% of Canadians would be willing to reopen the Constitution for the purpose of making changes to the Senate. Much more public support than that would be needed before we would go down that road again.

Colleagues, in my lifetime, the only major Senate reform that has truly succeeded has been Prime Minister Trudeau’s initiative toward creating an independent Senate.

I want to make a few observations about public opinion and speak a bit about what Canadians think of the Senate.

First, we still have challenges with the way the public views the Senate overall. In reviewing national public opinion research conducted by Nanos Research last year, I tried to dig into the weeds to understand what the remaining sources of public dissatisfaction with our chamber were.

Among the number of Canadians who hold a negative view of the Senate, here are the reasons they give for why they view us negatively. Some are critical because we are not elected, and they would prefer to have an elected Senate. Others are critical because they say the Senate is still too partisan, yet others still point to the scandals of many years past. But the single most important critique is that they do not see that we provide value for money. They don’t know exactly what we do, they think maybe we cost too much. They are not quite sure, and that really emerges as the most important of all the critiques.

Colleagues, we have not told the story of our hard work, purpose and sober second thought very well, and we must continue to do a better job of that. When it comes to the independent Senate, however, we see a lot of positive feedback from Canadians.

In the Nanos survey from last year, there was widespread approval of the new Senate appointment process that has been in place since 2016. According to the data, 80% of Canadians think it’s a good change and a good development that new senators sit as independent members and are not active in a political party. Furthermore, 67% think that the open application process to become a senator is a good change, and 79% say it’s a good change that an independent board reviews applications for the Senate.

Most importantly, colleagues, Canadians want future governments to keep building an independent Senate. Three quarters of Canadians — 76% — want future governments to keep the changes to the appointment process that have been implemented, and only 3% of Canadians want to return to the previous ways of appointing senators.

Colleagues, we still have work to do. We must keep building awareness of the Senate’s unique role in governance and of the move toward independence and non-partisanship. When awareness of the independent Senate increases, so do positive attitudes.

I will conclude by saying the reforms promoting independence are a very bright light for our institution. Division 13 of Bill C-19 is an important and vital step toward recognizing our independent Senate and recognizing it into the future. I will be voting yes. Thank you.