Clara Room 1150, The Valour Building Ottawa, Ontario KIA 0A6 Tel: 613-993-6654 Fax: 613-993-9007 Comace 112-4716 Lazelle Avenue Terrace, BC V8G 112 Tel March 15, 2017 Office of the Prime Minister 80 Wellington St Ottawa, ON KIP 5K9 Dear Pri ne Minister Trudeau, House oF Commons Ctnnte Des commons ‘CANADA Nathan Cullen ‘Skeena~ Bulkley Valley Smithers 3891 Ist Avenue Mail to: PO Box 4914 Smithers, BC VO} 2NO Tel: 250-877-4140 Fax: 250-877-4141 Dince Ripert sis 3d Avenue Hest Prince Rupert BC VS} IM ers2s040222415 S077 Fax As you are aware, New Democrats believe the Senate is a structure of a bygone era, whose members routinely fail to represent the views of Canadians as a result of the absence of accountability of Parliament's unelected chamber. ‘The recent reports of unethical behaviour by Senators is just another chapter in a book of scandals Canadians ate tired of reading. Yet, until a new government is elected with the courage and conviction to pursue Senate abolition, Canadians are stuck with it, Canadians are also stuck remain protected from expul ‘Senators who are regularly under investigation for betraying the public’s trust but who This unfortunate situation calls out for substantial improvement to the ways in which the Senate governs its own membership, It’s cle short of bringing accountability to the Senate. that efforts made by you, Prime Minister, have fallen While voters can give the proverbial boot to governments with whom they have lost faith, Canadians have no ability to dismiss their representatives in the Senate. It’s time the Senate implement new rules for the removal of Senators who have violated ethical standards. Under our constitution, the Senate is the master of its own domain and therefore has the power and jurisdiction to establish rules that would provide clarity for the removal a Senator from office, Senators could immediately take up this task and set the threshold for expulsion to any act, nathan cullenaparl geca ‘netp:/nathancullen calthat contravenes the Ethics and Conflict of Interest Code for Senators (recently renamed the Code for Senators). Currently Senators can only be expelled from office under very specific circumstances, such as if they receive a criminal conviction with a sentence of two or more years, or if they are found guilty of treason, This allows for Senators to commit all sorts of unethical and criminal behaviour and remain in office, collecting a very large salary and voting on laws that directly affect Canadians. You have spoken at length for the need for serious reform to the operations of the Senate, To quote the Liberal Party’s 2015 platform on Senate reform, “The status quo is not an option.” While I respect that you are unable to make these changes through the powers of your office alone, your endorsement of new system to expel Senators who have broken the public's trust, would have significant positive implications. Prime Minister, I urge you to add your voice to this initiative and support bringing a minimum level of accountability to the Senate of Canada. Me oe Nathan Cullen, MP Skeena- Bulkley Valley