Conservatives Weaken Election Laws in Canada

February 4, 2014

OTTAWA – The Liberal Democratic Reform Critic, Scott Simms, issued the following statement today in response to proposed changes to the Canada Elections Act:

“The changes to the Canada Elections Act introduced by the Conservative government are clearly an attack on Elections Canada. These legislative changes are evidently in response to Elections Canada investigating the Conservative Party of Canada for numerous Elections Act violations.

“We should be strengthening Canadians’ democracy – not weakening it. Instead of strengthening the powers of the Commissioner of Canada Elections – the officer responsible for enforcing election laws – the Conservatives have removed him from Elections Canada and refused to allow any new investigative powers, which the Commissioner has stated are critical to effectively enforcing the Canada Elections Act.

“For almost two years, the Conservatives have been promising a bill to reform the Elections Act. Even after all this time, the Chief Electoral Officer has not been consulted on the Conservatives’ very extensive changes to the law. The government has also ignored the panel of experts responsible for advising Elections Canada on electoral reform.

“Whether it is the ‘In and Out’ scandal, fraudulent voter suppression, or senior Conservative MPs violating the Elections Act, the Conservatives’ record is shameful. It should come as no surprise that the Prime Minister is seeking to gut Elections Canada and undermine its ability to enforce election laws in Canada.”