Former government point man Peter Harder joins the Progressive Senate Group

Sen. Peter Harder, the former government representative in the upper house, has joined the Progressive Senate Group — a shock move that could have a major impact on how the Red Chamber is organized in the months ahead.

Harder served as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's point man in the Senate — the person tasked with shepherding legislation through the upper house — until December 2019. He presided over major reforms as the prime minister pushed for a less partisan, more independent Senate through an arms-length appointments process.

After leaving his post, Harder sat as a non-affiliated senator instead of joining the Independent Senators Group (ISG), which was established in 2016 and is made up mostly of Trudeau appointees.

Harder has now decided to join the Progressives, a group composed largely of former Liberal senators appointed by prime ministers Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin.

Trudeau dropped all Liberal senators from the national caucus in 2014, at the height of the Senate expenses scandal. The assembly of former Liberal senators changed its name to the Progressive Senate Group in November 2019 in an effort to recruit more senators who were leery of joining a group with past partisan ties.

Harder's move comes a week after Manitoba Sen. Patricia Bovey jumped from the ISG to sit with the Progressives — and others could follow in the weeks ahead.

The Progressive Senate Group is not an official group under the Senate rules, as it has less than the nine members needed to be "recognized."

Harder concerned about 'majoritarianism'

In an interview with CBC News Thursday, Harder said he doesn't like the idea of one-party rule in the Senate. So far, most of Trudeau's 50 appointees have joined the ISG, meaning the group has roughly half of all sitting senators.

Harder said he worries partisanship has been replaced by "majoritarianism" in the Senate as the ISG looks to tighten its grip on the levers of power in the upper house.

"I do worry about a Senate in which there's one group that so dominates that there's the temptation not to treat all senators as equal, and I don't want to contribute to that. In fact, I want to be part of a bulwark against that," Harder said.

In an effort to stop defections from his group, the ISG's facilitator, B.C. Sen. Yuen Pau Woo, passed a motion in the chamber (before its pandemic-imposed recess began) to strip committee seats from members who leave a recognized caucus or group, with a few exceptions.

Woo also has been accused of trying to block non-affiliated senators, including the Progressives, from access to committee seats — a charge he has denied.

Much of the Senate's "sober second thought" function is carried out at committees, and committee seats are prized by senators.

"I have tremendous respect for Sen. Woo and the leadership of the ISG. I am concerned that majoritarianism can become a new partisanship and I would caution against that behaviour because it doesn't respect the equality of senators and the importance of listening to voices outside any one group or caucus," Harder said.

'Fear and favour'

He said the motion to strip committee seats from senators leaving the ISG or other groups is like ruling with "fear and favour."

"I've made my decision as to which group to associate with in that context, absolutely," he said.

The Senate's selection committee, which is chaired by Woo, met May 1 and approved some seats for Progressive senators, but that report has not yet been adopted by the Red Chamber amid opposition from the Conservatives.

Conservative Senate Leader Don Plett has asked the Speaker to investigate whether Woo's move to populate committees during the pandemic is a breach of parliamentary privilege.

In an email to CBC, Woo said he offered up to 13 committee seats to non-affiliated senators and some of them have yet to be filled.

He said the leaders of all recognized parties and groups agreed with his motion to reassign the committee seats of defectors.

"It was a collective decision for committee seats to revert to a given group if a senator left that group. That is on public record," he said.

As government representative, Harder championed Trudeau's push to reconstitute the chamber along non-partisan lines — but he said Thursday he didn't expect the system to morph into one where all new members would sit in a single group.

Indeed, Harder has advocated for the creation of "affinity" groups or regional caucuses for organizational purposes.

He said there should be a more equitable distribution of senators moving forward. "I wouldn't say 10 groups, that's crazy," he said. "But four groups? That's not bad.

"There should be no one group dominating the management of the Senate."

Asked to respond to Harder's comments about the threat of one-group rule in the upper house, Woo said the ISG is a non-partisan group whose members hold a range of views on legislation and policy.

"ISG senators are committed to a more independent, less partisan upper house, and to the rigorous scrutiny of legislation, consistent with the Senate's role as a chamber that is complementary to the House of Commons," he said.

"Sen. Harder has been a strong advocate for a more independent, less partisan Senate, and we look forward to his continued advocacy of Senate modernization."

The role of the opposition

Harder also said the role of the Official Opposition in the Senate should be protected.

Woo introduced a motion in December 2019 that would strip references to "opposition" and "opposition leader" from the Senate rules — a proposal that outraged the Conservatives because they fear Woo is trying to paper over the existence of an officially recognized opposition in the chamber.

The proposed changes would effectively end that government and opposition duopoly by recognizing all caucuses and groups as equal — changes that some say would dilute the ability of the opposition to effectively hold the government of the day to account in the upper house.

"I think that would be a needless rabbit hole to go down," Harder said, when asked if the chamber should dismantle the Official Opposition.

"I'm not offended by the notion of contrarian or opposition views. I think it sharpens the government's thinking. It caused me to work hard to achieve the compromises necessary to advance legislation," he said.

Senate caucuses and groups explained

The Government Representative Office (GRO)

Quebec Sen. Marc Gold and his two lieutenants are responsible for ushering government legislation through the upper house. (3 members)

The Independent Senators Group (ISG)

Formed in 2016, the ISG is composed largely of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's appointees. Since his election in 2015, Trudeau has appointed independent senators largely free of party ties. Led by B.C. Sen. Yuen Pau Woo. (49 members)

The Conservatives

These senators are members of the national Conservative Party of Canada caucus. The Conservatives are the last remaining caucus in the Senate formally tied to a party in the House of Commons. Led by Manitoba Sen. Don Plett. (21 members)

The Canadian Senators Group

A right-of-centre group of mostly former Conservative senators who broke away from the national caucus. Led by interim leader Alberta Sen. Scott Tannas. (13 members)

The Progressive Senate Group

A left-of-centre group composed mostly of former Liberal senators appointed by former prime ministers Jean Chretien and Paul Martin. Led by Nova Scotia Sen. Jane Cordy. (8 members)

The non-affiliated

Senators who are not members of any group or caucus.