NEWS RELEASE

March 1, 2001                                                                                               For Immediate Release

BREITKREUZ CALLS FOR THE ELECTION OF THE NEXT SENATOR FROM SASKATCHEWAN

“Saskatchewan people need a Senator that will represent them, not the Prime Minister.” 

OTTAWA - Garry Breitkreuz, Member of Parliament for Yorkton-Melville, rose in the House of Commons yesterday and called for the election of the next Senator from Saskatchewan.  Here is what he said:

Mr. Speaker, a Senate seat has now become vacant in the province of Saskatchewan with the resignation of Eric Berntson.  This represents a wonderful opportunity for the government to reach out to western Canada and show that it is committed to meaningful Parliament reform. 

The Senate was created to provide the checks and balances necessary for a democracy to work effectively.  Areas of high population should not run roughshod over less populated regions.  For the Senate to be properly accountable, it must be elected.  The separation movement in my riding would not likely have started if the government had not neglected the agricultural areas of our country.

Our next Senator in Saskatchewan should be selected by the people of Saskatchewan.  The problem is not Canada, it is the federal government and the fact that we no longer have an effective democracy.  It is more like an elected dictatorship.

There is a concern amongst Saskatchewan MPs that the Prime Minister might appoint a defeated Liberal candidate, who in the last election threatened Saskatchewan farmers by claiming they would not get help from the government if they did not vote Liberal.  Isn’t it obvious that voting Liberal had not made much difference to farmers who Prime Minister effectively controls both Houses of Parliament.are on the brink of bankruptcy?  It hasn’t even helped farmers to have someone from Saskatchewan in the Cabinet.  Many Canadians are concerned that the Prime Minister will simply appoint a loyal Liberal as a reward for the work they have done during the election campaign.  So the

Breitkreuz concluded by asking the Prime Minister, “Will the Prime Minister, who claims to represent the interest of all Canadians, allow this seat to be held in trust until the provincial government passes legislation to elect its federal representative in the Senate?"

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For more information please call:

Ottawa: (613) 992-4394

Yorkton: (306) 782-3309

E-mail: breitg@parl.gc.ca

Web Site: www.garrybreitkreuz.com