Senator Lorna Milne visits PROBUS for interesting talk
By Bill & Margaret Cunning

Last month as we focused on local elections and our minds were tuned to the political process, it was our pleasure to welcome as our October speaker, the Honourable Lorna Milne, a member of the Canadian Senate. As some of you may not know, or fully understand the purpose of the Senate, Milne's presentation A view from the Senate, was very informative.

The senator began by explaining that the purpose of the Senate is to provide sober second thought to bills coming from the House of Parliament, with the exception of money bills. There is a process a bill must go through before it passes into law. The bill is presented to the House, then on to the Senate and there it passes to the Committee for study and finally back to the House for a third reading. The Senate, which is less partisan politically than the House, can delve more deeply into the bills presented to the House.

The bills pass through the investigative stage at the committee level and such areas of study include euthanasia (which was actually developed into a text book); palliative care and a myriad of other areas of concern to the citizens of Canada. The protective stage of bill investigation was initially to protect regions, but it is also used to protect minorities and enforce the Charter of Rights.

An Accountability Bill is now being perused. There are some good ideas in this bill, but it also acts opposite to accountability in some areas. Justice Gomery made 15 recommendations, none of which are in the bill. It would change 80 acts of Parliament and allow government departments to keep things secret. This bill could parachute people into public service positions and could result in the politicizing of our public service.

Sheila Fraser, the Auditor General, will not make use of parts of the bill. Many agencies were not consulted and there were only 148 hours of hearings, and lots of interviewees pointed out many errors. The Senate proposed lots of amendments, some of which were simple, and the Senate will fight the bill. Parliament's study of the bill was well done.

Milne is one of two Senators representing southwest Ontario and concentrates on agriculture. The senator informed us that one third of the Class A land is in this region and a lot of paving over is being done. This is of great concern in this area of Ontario.

Milne feels it is a great honour to be in the Senate and spends 25 hours a week in meetings; Monday to Thursday. The senator also belongs to many caucuses which take up seven of the 25 hours, and is also president of the Canadian- European Parliamentary Association. Along with this the senator has her regular office work and sometimes has to pass work on to other Senators.

Milne, whose husband was a politician, achieved her position as senator through volunteer work and later by working for Jean Chrétien.

There are many who would like to see Senate reform and advocate for an elected Senate. The senator feels that if we opt for an elected Senate, some senators, who make marvellous contributions, could, for various reasons, not get elected, as they are not politicians and would not show well in an election. Milne is in agreement with a term limit for senators, and her feeling is that 12-15 years would be about right. The first five years as a learning experience; the second five "to do" and the third five to educate. At present some senators could be there for 40 years.

Unfortunately, space does not permit us to discuss the senator's work with the C a n a d i a n - E u r o p e a n Parliamentary Association, but one area the senator touched on was that some EU countries do not think much of our policy on seal hunting and regard Canada as barbarous in this regard.

We extend our grateful thanks to Senator Milne for a very informative and interesting presentation.

We invite all retirees to join us on the second Thursday of each month at the Caledon Seniors' Centre, Rotary Place, at 10 a.m. Come spend a winter morning with us and feel warmed by the smiles of new friends and a hot 'cuppa.'