Canadian Democracy Veiws Of Canadians Essay - 1450 Words

Strengthening Canadian Democracy The views of Canadians nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In the report by Paul Howe and David Northrup titled, â€Å"Strengthening Canadian Democracy: the Views of Canadians† Policy Matters 1:5, Canadians attitudes towards government including questions about electoral system reform, representation and the rate of veter turnout.(Howe amp; Northrup, 2000) After reading, this report it is clear that many Canadians find many issues of their government to be unacceptable. One of the most menacing concerns is in the form that government attains office. The voting process, the form in which Canadians are represented by their Members of Parliament, and the first past the post method of election.†¦show more content†¦More specifically the representation that women and visible minorities receive in parliament. â€Å"Women, visible minorities, and Aboriginal peoples continue to be significantly under-represented in the ranks of elected politicians at all levels of government.†(Howe amp; Northrup, 2000) It is obvious that sufficient representation by government means that everyone in Canada must be represented. There has been an increase for females elected to parliament, however it is subtle. In comparison to other countries, Canada is in the middle, ranked 29th worldwide, in this area. (Howe amp; Northrup, 2000) Canadians do feel that something should be done to even the playing field by choosing as many female representatives as they do males, much like the Reforms taking place in France. Measures have been taken to rectify this situation, with Bill C-2. This Bill suggested that parties with at least 20 per cent female MPs would be granted a larger amount of reimbursement for their election expenses, and an even larger refund for those parties with 30 per cent female MPs. (Howe amp; Northrup, 2000) Canadians support the idea that parties should be required to increase the amount of female candidates. Visible minorities are also under-represented by government. In 1997, visible minorities accounted for little over 6 per cent of Members of Parliament. An increase from 1993 when this group made up 4.4 per cent, and 1.7 per cent in 1988.Show MoreRelatedThe Importance of the Jury System1366 Words   |  6 Pageseffective and useful because Canada prides itself in its value of democracy which is shown through the involvement in justice, it allows for the peers of an accused to hear the entire facts of a case and the fate of the accused is not in the hands of solely one individual who may have conflicting opinions and values than that of the accused. In the following, the reasons for having the jury system become an integral part of the Canadian Justice System. The involvement of a jury is important because