A modernized Senate? Report gives 21 ways to make a 21st century upper chamber
OTTAWA — A group of senators looking at the future of the upper chamber has laid out 21 recommendations for a modernized Senate. Many of the recommendations have been talked about for months, others for years, as the Senate lurches into a new, less partisan reality. Here are some highlights from the report.
Lights! Camera! Action?
The House of Commons has cameras. Ditto for Commons and Senate committees. Not so for the Senate chamber, which only started broadcasting audio during the height of the Senate spending scandal three years ago. The report calls for cameras to be installed in the Government Conference Centre, which will house the Senate during the decade the Centre Block is under construction starting in 2018. The recommendation itself is nothing new: It has been discussed for years with little agreement among senators to make it happen.
Question. Period.