From today’s PEI Citizens’ Alliance News:
On May 1st, a most eloquent proposal to really focus on the health of people and society—Motion 40, “Encouraging government to adopt a ‘Health in all Policies’ approach to governance.”
Peter Bevan-Baker and Hannah Bell both speak to this, and then government MLA and Economic Development Minister Chris Palmer was tasked to speak to it until the hour was called. He’s been asked to do some pieces of work—move the government’s “MMP: No or Yes” motion, speak constantly about taking the federal government’s investigation in the PNP resident scandal “seriously”, and that Tuesday night, making some of the more inane stream-of-consciousness comments about the Third Party Motion.
Sixteen minutes of Bevan-Baker, Bell, and then Palmer (with bonus snarky comments from Transportation Minister Paula Biggar) at the end; or just read it, starting around page 2226, for about three pages of text.
How heartachingly difficult it must be for Mr. Bevan-Baker and Ms. Bell to present such a well-considered, sensible motion, based on government’s own research, only to have the government response pay it no heed whatsoever, and, indeed, to belittle it with neo-liberal talking points.
Members on the government side need not agree with the ideas and motions that other parties bring forward, but to swat them away so dismissively as a distraction from the business at hand not only insults their fellow MLAs, but dishonours the spirit of collegial debate that should be the backbone of how our legislature operates.
Unfortunately this is not an isolated case: the government reaction to the Well-being Measurement Act when it was introduced in 2015 was similarly tinged.
I expect more from my government than this.
Comments
The original version of this post characterized the government reaction to the Green motion as “reactionary neo-liberal lunkheadery,” which, upon reflection, seemed too much like ad hominem language when calling for the setting aside of ad hominem language. But the response was straight out of the neo-liberal playbook, hence “neo-liberal talking points” in its place.
I agree 100 per cent. Another perfect example was the recent debate over adopting the fox as our provincial animal. Government ministers / MLAs tend to treat Legislature as an inconvenience, when they should treat it as a privilege.
We need recall legislation in this province so we can fire politicians.
I have noticed that a lack of respect in general seems to be the practice here both in the Legislature and at City Council in Ch'Town. No respect for fellow members and no respect for the public. Sad state of affair and a negative note on democratic values in general. Attitudes like this turn people away from participating in the democratic process.