RE:RE:Who else is excited to be talking about the senate found this of interest concerning the senate:
note to self: I would be very suprised if Trudeau would not ALREADY be on top of this
'one of its most effective functions is the
quiet, in-depth study and review of national issues (including the hearing of expert witnesses) by Senate
Committees. Committees go over proposed bills clause by clause and often hear voluminous evidence, sometimes over a period of months. Committees are usually non-partisan and can draw on a vast reservoir of members' knowledge and experience: former federal and provincial ministers, former members of the Commons and provincial assemblies, veteran lawyers and business people, farmers, women and ethnic representatives, and even an occasional trade unionist. Senate committees have produced careful studies on
unemployment, land use,
science policy,
poverty,
aging, the mass media (see
Communications) and
Indian affairs. Senate investigations have often led to important changes in government policy or legislation.'
Senate Powers
The Senate has almost the same powers as the House of Commons. Bills are read three times in the Commons as well as in the Senate. The Senate can only delay constitutional amendments for 180 days. But no bill can become law without its consent, and it can veto any bill as often as it likes. The Senate cannot initiate money bills (taxes or expenditures). Neither House can increase amounts in money bills. The Senate has not vetoed a bill from the Commons since 1939. The Senate now very rarely makes amendments of principle. The amendments it does make to bills now are almost always related to drafting — to clarify, simplify and tidy proposed legislation.
In 1987 the Senate temporarily blocked Bill C22 (pharmaceutical patents) but eventually agreed to amendments. In 1990 the Liberal dominated Senate effectively blocked plans of the Conservative government to pass the legislation for the unpopular Goods and Services Tax (GST). This led Prime Minister Brian Mulroney to use his power to fill eight vacant senate seats, in order to ensure passage of the legislation in 1990.
The Senate's legally absolute veto was expected to be really no more than a delaying veto because, until the late 1860s, governments were usually short-lived, and none, it seemed, would be able to build up a large enough majority in the Senate to block a successor government of the opposition party. But most Canadian governments since then have been long-lived, and as appointments are almost invariably partisan. The Senate has often had a large opposition majority, and also, through much of the late 20th Century, a heavy preponderance of Liberals. Since the election of Stephen Harper's Conservative government in 2006, however, party power in the Senate has shifted. By 2016, there were 42 Conservative senators, 25 Liberals, 21 independents and 17 vacancies.
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/senate/