The Canadian Senate has long been considered an institutional pariah, viewed as an undemocratic, outmoded warehouse for patronage appointments and mired in spending and workload scandals. In 2014, the federal government was compelled to refer constitutional questions to the Supreme Court relating to its attempts to enact senatorial elections and term limits.
Constitutional Pariah explores the aftermath of Reference re Senate Reform, which barred major unilateral alteration of the Senate by Parliament. Ironically, the decision resulted in one of the most sweeping parliamentary reforms in Canadian history, creating a pathway to informal changes in the appointments process that have curbed patronage and partisanship.
Despite reinvigorating the Senate, Reference re Senate Reform has far-reaching implications for constitutional reform in other contexts. Macfarlane's sharp critique suggests that the Court's nebulous approach to the amending formula raises the spectre of a frozen constitution, unable to evolve with the country.
Table of Contents:
Introduction: The Making of a Landmark Case
1 The Senate's (Unfulfilled) Roles
2 A Short History of Senate Reform
3 If at First You Don't Succeed … The Harper Government and the Senate
4 The Decision
5 Informal Reform and a New Appointments Process: A Renewed Senate?
6 A Constitution in Stasis? Prospects and Problems for Future Constitutional Change
Conclusion: The Future of the Senate, Parliament, and Constitutional Reform
Notes; Select Bibliography; Index of Cases; Index
About the Author :
Emmett Macfarlane is an associate professor of political science at the University of Waterloo. His research focuses on the intersection of governance, constitutional law, and public policy. He is the author of Governing from the Bench: The Supreme Court of Canada and the Judicial Role and is the editor of Constitutional Amendment in Canada and Policy Change, Courts, and the Canadian Constitution.
Review :
… [Macfarlane's] book provides a clear and vigorous account of the last few decades of debates over the Senate, particularly the 2014 reference to the Supreme Court about what changes Parliament can make to the Senate without seeking constitutional amendments.
- Christopher Moore, author of Louisbourg Portraits: Life in An Eighteenth Century Garrison Town (Christopher Moore's History Blog) If there is a better book on the challenges of constitutional change in Canada, I have yet to see it. - Richard Albert, Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa (Alberta Law Review) I encourage scholars to enter the conversation on the possibilities and limits of Senate Reform that Macfarlane has initiated with this dazzling book and to join the broader discussion on constitutional reform in Canada from perspectives in law, political science, and beyond. - Richard Albert, University of Ottawa (Alberta Law Review) Centered around the 2014 Supreme Court of Canada decision Reference re Senate Reform (2014 SSC 32), this book goes beyond a simple discussion of the decision itself and sets the context through a study of the past, present, and future of the Senate... Macfarlane lets the topic bloom out around the decision and, in the end, leaves the reader with an excellent grounding in all things Senate. - Emily Benton, University of Ottawa (Canadian Law Library Review)
