March 1, 2005

Honorable Ralph Klein
Premier of Alberta
307, 10800-97 Avenue
Edmonton, AB T5K 2B6

Dear Premier,

A minority government in Ottawa is rapidly proving to create even more frustrations among the Premiers than past regimes. Provinces are left with little or no voice except angry protests thorough the media.

The Premiers are very possibly more ready to act to change the status quo than they have ever been. In 1992 the Premiers unanimously agreed on a reform package including an elected, equal, and effective Senate in the Charlottetown Accord, and they agreed to study the idea in the Council of the Federation in July 2003. Senate reform is for all provinces and interests. It can and should be proposed as a stand alone constitutional amendment.

The Charlottetown Accord came together as the direct result of a task force struck by the Alberta government to promote a Triple E Senate across Canada. Deputy Premier Jim Horsman was Chair. Peter Meekison, Stan Schumacher, and Bert Brown made up the four permanent members. The Alberta Senate Reform Task Force took a different MLA to each province during its meeting with Premiers, Cabinets, editorial boards, and television stations across Canada. With the legitimacy of the Alberta Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, a staff of four including Oryssia Lennie, Gordon Olsen, Gary Pocock and Bill Ghiada, that task force promoted the idea of real Senate reform to all the provincial governments over a three month series of meetings

Premier Klein this country is ready for the Council of the Federation to agree on the only reform capable of making an effective, long lasting and democratic change to its parliamentary makeup, a truly reformed Senate. If Alberta will lead this effort once more with a reactivated Senate reform Task Force, I will again serve on it and Dr. Peter McCormick has offered to serve as a academic constitutional expert. If you will allow Minister Stelmach and his staff to set up the official government to government meetings, your elected Senate nominees can sell real Senate reform to the provincial legislatures from coast to coast in a matter of months, not years. The only opponents to real Senate reforms are political advisors at the provincial and federal levels who are first apologists for the status quo and secondly seriously out of touch with the frustrations facing this country if we do nothing to improve the functioning of parliament.

Reform of the Senate requires in depth discussions with Premiers and MLAs in isolation from other agendas. While it is a subject very difficult to sell at First Ministers’ conferences where the agenda is always overwhelmed by issues of immediate urgency, such as health care and equalization payments, a task force can do all the spade work leading to a potential formal agreement by the members of the Council of the Federation.

The Alberta Government and the Triple E Committee have moved the idea of Senate Reform above 80% support across Canada with two steps, keeping the message simple and staying persistently on that message. The Federal minority government provides an urgent window of opportunity to move reform forward. Albertans can make a second Reform of the Senate surpass their first, “The Persons Case” which established women as “Persons” and thus eligible for appointment to the Canadian Senate.

Since our conversation in December, the Senate nominees have met with the Honorable Ed Stelmach. We are scheduled to have a second meeting on March 8, in Edmonton. I would appreciate a chance to discuss this proposal with you, prior to that date.

Sincerely,

Bert Brown, Chairman
Cell: 403-860-1938
Phone: 403-935-4992

cc; Hon Ed Stelmach
& PC Caucus