How effective can Wilson-Raybould and Philpott be as Independent MPs? The National's politics panel weighs in
This week's announcement from ex-Liberal ministers prompted lively debate
When Jane Philpott and Jody Wilson-Raybould announced earlier this week they were going to run as Independents, it started a conversation about just what that means — and what an Independent might be able to do or not do for their constituents.
The former president of the Treasury Board and ex-justice minister resigned from cabinet in March and were kicked out of the Liberal Party caucus after they publicly raised concerns about political interference in the SNC-Lavalin affair.
I went on the CBC podcast Front Burner to talk about their announcement and the challenges the two now face as Independents: money, lack of party resources, an electoral system that doesn't really favour Independents, the list goes on.
It didn't go over well with all the listeners. Some of them felt I was being too dismissive of Independents.
One Twitter user explained his reasoning this way:
I also don’t like how easily we dismiss changing our system, either restoring MP’s proper power or electoral reform. We ran an election on the promise of this change. I often wonder how much our system is the way it is because our media reports it’s current state as immovable
—@KORichardsonThat got me to thinking, and we threw the question to At Issue, our weekly politics panel on The National.
WATCH: Political commentators Chantal Hébert and Andrew Coyne and Aaron Wherry of CBC's Parliament Hill bureau discuss how the inclusion of more Independents could affect Canada's political system:
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
