P.A. candidates react to the Green Party exclusion

“I think it does show that the big media corporations are not supporting real Canadian democracy … the greens got six per cent of the vote … that’s a pretty healthy segment of the population, just spread out over the whole country. The fact that it is spread out over the whole country means that the green party is hitting on a lot of issues that Canadians really care about,” Brazier said.

If May isn’t included in the debate there will be issues, such as the environment, that won’t get the proper attention, “I think that we’re going to be missing out on some good debates not having her included,” Brazier said.

The NDP and Liberal candidate in the Prince Albert riding also feel May should be included in the debates.

“I think it would be more democratic if she would have a say, I know the party does not have any representation in the House but they did have people vote for them,” said Liberal candidate Ron Wassill.

“I think that Elizabeth May should be allowed to speak, she does represent a significant portion of the population based on her vote count in the election and so she does have a national presence … I think she would bring something to the debate that we need to hear,” said NDP candidate Valerie Mushinski.

Incumbent and Conservative candidate Randy Hoback said the leaders should abide by the decision the networks have made.

“(The networks) have their criteria that the Green Party has to match and if they don’t match it then I guess they shouldn’t be part of the debate … it’s what the rules are that lay out the groundwork of who can participate and who can’t and those rules are pretty clear, so we have to respect the rules just like anybody else,” said Hoback.

Hoback said all fringe parties should be able to have their say in a debate, but debates can’t function with too many people trying to talk at once.

The debate over the debates shouldn’t be happening — they only arose because there are no concrete rules set in place surrounding the event, said professor of political science at the University of Saskatchewan, David McGrane.

“We need some clear rules around who participates and who doesn’t. These rules should be established well before the election starts so we can stop having this perpetual debate every time the elections come up about who should be included in the leadership debates and who should not.”

McGrane suggested an amendment to the Canadian election act or an independent, arms-length commission for leadership debates to correct the problem.

McGrane said the current system is “horrible.”

“It’s all about making predictable rules so people know what to expect at election time and so we’re not making up rules on the fly all the time and in an ad-hoc basis like what’s happening right now.”

May was initially not invited to the leadership debates preceding the 2008 federal election but the networks later reversed their decision due to an outcry of support from the public.

The Green Party has hired a lawyer to help argue her case against the networks and hopes to make them reverse their decision again.

It’s depends on the parties and the networks whether she will be included again, “it’s really hard to predict right now what’s going to happen,” McGrane said.

Brazier said he hopes May will succeed, “she can be a force to be reckoned with, that’s why she’s the leader.”

The leadership debates will take place in English on Apr. 12 and in French on Apr. 14.

lschick@panow.com

by Lisa Schick

P.A. candidates react to the Green Party exclusion

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