MP Leona Alleslev, gun control legislation, and being just a little bit starstruck
I have to admit, walking into Elizabeth May’s office on Parliament Hill for the first time was a little surreal. There are two large flags flanking her door — the flag of Canada and a flag with the Earth on it — and right above the door, nestled into the woodwork, is a plaque with “May, Elizabeth.” But behind that door is a desk with my name on it (figuratively, not literally), which is almost as surreal.
A few minutes into my new job I figured out that my main task is going to be corresponding with Ms. May’s constituents. Letters and emails received at her office in Parliament range from asking her to help them find housing in Vancouver to appealing to her to save the endangered Salish Sea orcas to criticism of her political stance. She receives over 400,000 letters and emails a year, and most of it is supportive. My job is to go through it all and respond to as much of it as I can. However, I only draft the responses to her letters. Once a week, Ms. May sits down to review and edit every single draft response to every single letter she receives.
Correspondence may make up the backbone of my workday, but I also sometimes attend Question Period (QP). QP is an hour of each sitting day in the House of Commons during which the majority government (the Liberals) responds to questions posed by the opposition (not the Liberals). According to the House of Commons Compendium, “The primary purpose of Question Period is to seek information from the Government and to call it to account for its actions.” As you might imagine, things can get a bit heated during QP.
For example, the first day back in session, the Conservatives were shouting and interrupting the Liberals. At one point, I even heard one Conservative MP yell “word salad” at Trudeau while he was answering a question. Not entirely sure what that means, but I found it amusing. On the other hand, Trudeau and the Liberals kept resolutely calm throughout the hour and appeared entirely unruffled by the commotion. But this level of noise is to be expected — we are going into an election year, after all.
Unfortunately, I missed the moment in Monday’s QP when Liberal MP Leona Alleslev (Aurora – Oak Ridges – Richmond Hill) crossed the floor to join the Conservatives. According to an article published by CBC, “this is the first floor crossing the Liberals have faced since Prime Minister Trudeau assumed leadership of the party in 2014.” This move, constituting nothing less than a mutiny for the Liberals, was apparently the result of Alleslev’s dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of “the economy, tax reform, foreign affairs and trading relationships,” as well as “inadequate military spending,” CBC reports. In classic, stoic Canadian style, Trudeau said in an interview with Paul Wells of Maclean’s that the proceedings were “not great but it’s also not the end all be all.”
But QP is just where the MPs warm up for the main part of their workday: debating and voting on bills. The bill that may have raised the most arm hairs over the past two weeks was C-71, the hotly-contested bill on gun control. This bill (which incidentally passed on Monday, Sept. 24, 185 to 79) ensures that gun vendors keep a registry of guns sold; it will also enhance background checks for gun buyers. As far as I can tell, proponents of C-71 believe this legislation will put back in place the sorely-needed means to keep track of gun sales in Canada while antagonists believe that it will make it harder to obtain a gun licence. But, isn’t that the point? Everyone knows that illegal and unregistered firearms are a problem in Canada, so I just don’t see how also taking measures to keep track of the legal ones is a step in the wrong direction.
I also have to admit that one great thing about working in the Parliamentary Precinct is the feeling that you’re in a sort of Hollywood for political nerds. I was leaving work one day on my bike, minding my own business, and stumbled into Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada. And, I’ll have you know, he was every bit as dapper and well-dressed as GQ and the New York Times said he would be. But instead of going up to him and saying “Hey, I’m a big fan! And my old roommate used to work with you at Queen’s Park,” I instead froze and impeded traffic. I expect this starstruck state to pass quickly as these events become commonplace, and you never know — maybe I’ll even act normal next time I run into Mr. Singh (but that’s doubtful).
Photos Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons