Approval needed for any changes to electoral system through a referendum: Tories
Posted December 9, 2015 12:23 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The people must approve any changes to our electoral system through a referendum, say the Tories.
This comes as the Trudeau government is not providing clarity on whether or not any changes would require a vote.
“The government appears to be taking the position that the last election gave them a mandate not merely to go forward with exploring electoral reform, but actually imposing a new system upon Canada,” says Scott Reid, the Conservative critic on democratic institutions.
Having a serious look at alternatives to how we vote in our federal representatives was a promise from the Liberals during the election campaign, but now that party is stalling on a commitment to eventually put that issue to a referendum.
“To say that you have a mandate to make a specific change based on an election where many issues were discussed is to argue, I think, preposterously, that somehow that everyone who went and voted Liberal did so over this issue and not over other issues,” says Reid.
Reid points out when various provinces have looked at changes, the people have decided — including through two referendums here in BC since 2005.
