Bronwyn Eyre is a former Saskatchewan Minister of Energy and Resources for four years. She has also held the portfolios of Justice & Attorney General, Education, Advanced Education, SaskPower, SaskEnergy, SaskWater and Status of Women. She resides in Saskatoon.
“How can we say that we live in a united country when there is such a double standard?”
On March 5 at Toronto’s Albany Club, Bronwyn Eyre was presented with the inaugural Cartier-Macdonald award from the Canadian Constitution Foundation. The award was established to honour Canadians who have shown “exceptional leadership in advancing the principles of freedom” and “intellectual rigour and personal courage in defending democratic self-government and parliamentary supremacy.”
In her speech, Eyre took on the growing politicization of the courts, the importance of the Notwithstanding Clause, who gets to define the ‘rule of law’—and the need for greater debate.
Eyre is a columnist for the Western Standard and Pipeline Online, and is Saskatchewan’s former minister of Energy and Justice/Attorney General.
It’s truly an honour to be the recipient of this inaugural award, named after our first Prime Minister, John A.—“Mr. Canada”—who will withstand history, no matter how many streets named after him are re-named, or how many statues are removed or vandalized.
It’s unlikely that the vandals would know that it was none other than Pierre Trudeau who regarded himself as a “John A. Macdonald Conservative at heart.”
No doubt Mr. Trudeau also admired Sir George-Étienne Cartier—the other namesake of this amazing award—who, like his boss, Macdonald, was a great railway builder, nation-builder, a literal uniter: a once “Fils de la Liberté” (son of liberty), who took on the Crown and the “Château Clique” (forerunners of the “Laurentian Élite”), but went on to serve as Canada’s first Minister of Defence, and convinced French Canada that the Province of Quebec belonged in Confederation.
Hats off to the pragmatic patriots, John A. and Sir Cartier!
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
Law Society Codes of Professional Conduct prescribe that lawyers should always encourage “public respect for the administration of justice”—but at the same time, try to “improve it”; “never hesitate to speak out against injustice”; and, above all, commit to “equal justice within an impartial system.”
But, of course, that’s also where the nuances come in.
For example, John Crosbie’s notion of injustice was doubtless different from Jodie Wilson-Raybault’s. Or, for that matter, from Alan Blakeney’s.
All outspoken, even activist, Justice ministers.
After the Boushie case, Wilson-Raybault curtailed peremptory jury challenges. After the Ghomeishi case, she sought greater defence-side disclosure in sex assault cases, to de-fang perceived ‘gotcha’ cross-examination of complainants.
John Crosbie appointed more women to the Bench than anyone else. He was staunchly pro-choice. (But he also called Sheila Copps “baby”).
Blakeney was a great defender of the Charter (and its Notwithstanding Clause)—but in great part because he and, later, his Justice Minister, Roy Romanow, considered this constitutional package a protection against the élites.
Romanow was initially a Charter-skeptic. One reviewer wrote about his book, Canada…Notwithstanding, that traditionally, “The populist-socialist view was that the courts were elitist citadels of privilege which were not to be trusted”—and, in fact, made up, in Romanow’s words, part of a “majoritarian tyranny.”
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
So, what constitutes populism, privilege, equal justice, injustice depends—in great part—on your ideological perspective.
The law and politics are closely-intertwined.
Everything is political.
However, I would respectfully submit that, more than ever, it is much harder to be an outspoken or “activist,” small-c-conservative-leaning Justice Minister than otherwise.
To take on the “majoritarian tyranny”—the “elitist citadels of privilege” that now exist—civil libertarians must embrace and advocate for their own version of the ‘living tree.’
And then there’s the matter, the very delicate dance, of politics and the judiciary.
Let’s not forget Supreme Court Justice Bora Laskin’s dictum that a “judge has no freedom of speech to address political issues which have nothing to do with judicial duties. Abstention (from political discourse),” he said, “guarantees impartiality, integrity, and independence.”
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
Perceived judicial activism comes about when ideology masquerades as impartiality. When ideology hides behind the great shield (or sword) of “judicial independence.” When it hides behind the “rule of law” or so-called “rules-based order.”
Last month in Davos, Prime Minister Mark Carney channelled former anti-communist freedom fighter, Vaclav Havel—which was awkward—and called for a return to a “rules-based order.”
Many loved the speech, including a certain MP from Edmonton…
But it was laden with irony.
In Canada—in Europe!—the “rules-based order” has come to mean being existentially anti-American, while at the same time being dependent on America for both defence and trade.
As Konrad Yakabuski recently wrote, “Nothing symbolized what Carney called the ‘extreme global integration’ of the old world order more than Davos and the World Economic Forum. For decades,” he noted, “global élites preached the virtues of this integration, often at the expense of their own workers. This year [and with the advent of Trumpism], they came to mourn the end of an era, and Mr. Carney delivered the eulogy.”
Back in Saskatchewan, a now-retired judge was well-known for his ‘rule-of-law-is-being-eroded’ speech.
But the only places it was apparently being eroded were not in Venezuela, or Cuba, or China. It was in Conservative countries: Hungary. Poland. The U.S. (of course), and in Israel.
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
Speaking of Israel:
What really angered those protesting nightly on the streets back in 2023 was that the Netanyahu government was proposing something very similar to Canada’s Notwithstanding Clause—which, depending on your political leanings, is either a saviour of parliamentary sovereignty or the “nuclear option”: a destroyer of the “rule of law.”
In the very name of democracy itself, the federal government wants to limit the application of the Notwithstanding Clause (and, this year, the Supreme Court is set to decide the Clause’s fate—which is ironic in itself.)
But you get my drift. “The rule of law is being eroded.” We hear that all the time.
The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Richard Wagner, himself has called for “boldness” in the face of this erosion…
But have you noticed that it’s only, ever, a certain kind of boldness?
For example, Wagner called the 2022 Convoy “anarchy,” “hostage-taking,” “forced blows against the state, justice, and democratic institutions”—which should be “denounced with force by all figures of power.”
And now….
He is set to preside at the appeal of two Federal Court decisions which ruled against the invocation of the Emergencies Act.
Worthy of recusal? What would Bora Laskin say?
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
Meanwhile…
Has the ‘rule of law’ become the ‘rule of lawyers’?
British Labour peer, Lord Glasman, thinks so. He recently wrote that the international, rules-based order was achieved not through politics, but the law.
It crept up on us!
Sovereignty came to lie not in Parliament, he wrote, but in the courts.
Sovereignty came to be subordinated to international treaty law—which was prescribed by armies of unelected bureaucrats on behalf of bodies such as the UN and the EU.
Lawyers started to determine the acceptable parameters of politics.
The problem, as Glasman wrote, was that such a view was impossible to sustain.
Because politics is fundamental to how a society runs.
Brexit. Covid. Woke over-ideology. Mass immigration, Donald Trump.
These were among the big, populist game-changers that rattled the cage of the globalist “rules-based order.”
Suddenly we remembered: Voting matters! Parliaments matter!
They can, and actually should, make policy…pass legislation.
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
It is sign of desperation in the face of all that “rule by lawyers” that, increasingly in Canada, governments have had to resort to the Notwithstanding Clause—simply to carry out policy.
That’s crept up on us too.
As David Warren wrote in the National Post back in 2003:
“It is thanks to the unamendable 1982 Constitution that the Courts now rule Canada. It took them more than a decade to discover how much power Trudeau’s Charter had given them, and taken away from Parliament. Canada is going to hell in a handcart,” he went on. “And it isn’t just any handcart. It’s the Charter of Rights, pulled by the ghost of Pierre Trudeau.”
Religious symbols. Cross-provincial mobility of university graduates. Medical transitioning of minors. Back-to-work-legislation. School choice.
These are just some of the areas where the Notwithstanding Clause has been brought to bear.
But Alan Blakeney—father of the Charter, also a constitutional scholar—was very clear that the use of the Notwithstanding Clause does not amount to what he called a suspension of rights.
The Clause was intended to ensure that the state could, for “economic or social reasons”—or simply “because other rights were found to be more important—choose to override a Charter-protected right.”
There would be instances when “rights collide,” he said—but Charter rights are “not more important than other rights.”
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
In 1999, Supreme Court Justice Frank Iacobucci said the Notwithstanding Clause was “welcome” because it established, “a process of dialogue with the Legislatures.”
How lovely. What happened to dialogue?
“Dialogue” is what, in the Morgentaler case, for example, saw Supreme Court Justice Bertha Wilson explicitly serve back to Parliament the responsibility to legislate on the abortion issue. (And, of course, Parliament is where it remains to this day).
Speaking of dialogue:
The annual, so-called “roadshows”—undertaken by superior court justices in the name of supposed “transparency”—aren’t exactly enhancing it.
These usually feature a single, sycophantic news conference and carefully-choreographed “community visit.”
That’s ‘Potemkin Village.’
But in real communities, trouble is brewing.
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
For example, a recent Léger poll found that a majority of Canadians believe the justice system is working against law-abiding citizens, fuelling the feeling, “If the law doesn’t respect me, why should I respect the law?”
Who can blame them?
A University of Alberta law professor recently called the accusation “deeply troubling” that some judges are making decisions along “partisan lines.”
Putting aside that three-quarters of judges have donated to the Liberal Party; or that politicization starts early, with slanted “cultural competency” Law Society courses and overtly political positions taken by Bar Associations…
Putting all that aside: the late, great B.C. Court of Appeal Justice Mary Southin once said: “We have known for years that the Charter of Rights would bring political questions into the courts.” It was a “piece of Liberal silliness that we could have done without,” she added.
Bringing political questions to the courts. Where they’re being decided. Of course it’s happening.
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
Judges are using the Charter’s Section 7, for example, “life liberty and security of the person”, to:
- empower children to take on the climate policies of the entire province of Ontario;
- prevent homeless encampments from being dismantled until every “unhoused” member has been found somewhere to live;
- prevent the removal of bike lines; and
- prevent closure of drug consumption sites near preschools.
Not political?
According to the MacDonald-Laurier Institute, the $25 million-dollar, federally-funded Court Challenges program has subsidized ‘small-L’ liberal causes 96 per cent of the time!
And is it any wonder that there is a sense of “erosion” when:
- Bail has become entrenchedly skewed in favour of release. It’s right there in the Criminal Code.
- Private land ownership in B.C.—and, now, elsewhere—is suddenly in question.
- A landmark legal decision last year means that Canadian businesses risk lawsuits over “nature inaction” (but not Parks Canada for letting Jasper burn).
- More than 700 foreign criminals are at large. Violent crime and extortion are surging. Anti-semitism is a dirty secret.
- Police officers returned guns to the Tumbler Ridge shooter, despite many red flags (but AI companies are the culprit).
- As the CCF recently highlighted, a citizen in Windsor, Ontario, was handcuffed, arrested and charged with trespassing after he held up a sign on a city ice rink that simply read, “Under the Municipal Act, you’re required to provide a complete [not redacted] budget.”
Rule of law? How about the right to free expression or assembly?
Time for boldness?
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
When judges do speak up these days, they’re usually fretting about Danielle Smith (and her comments about how she sometimes wishes she could “direct” the judiciary—instead of having the judiciary direct the government. Stop the presses!)
Alberta Justice Colin Feasby was not amused when—after he’d been asked to review the constitutionality of a referendum question by the province’s chief electoral officer—the Alberta government simply introduced a new bill to enable it.
Feasby wrote that while the Legislature had that right, he had spent a “great deal of time”—including with Indigenous intervenors—reviewing the question, and that the bill was the “antithesis of the stable, predictable, and ordered society that the rule of law contemplates, and democracy demands.”
Says he.
For all the prevailing horror about musings of Danielle Smith’s, the counter-question should always be: Has Quebec ever proposed, or done, the same?
- How about effectively bypassing the federal immigration system? (It’s had in place an “economy-based system” since 1991)!
- Or using the Notwithstanding Clause 33 times and counting—(and, between 1982 and 1985, notwithstanding everything)!
- Or ensuring a roster of Supreme Court judges?
- Or holding two separation votes?
How can we say that we live in a united country when there is such a double standard?
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
And while Smith (and sometimes Doug Ford) are usually the bad guys, what about NDP Premier, David Eby, a former prosecutor and AG?
He recently “lashed out” at how judges are destroying the economy—and, specifically, at the B.C. Court of Appeal decision that now mandates governments to abide by UNDRIP in ALL existing legislation.
“Free, prior and informed consent.” That is tantamount to a veto over major projects in this country.
Eby said: “To face such dramatic overreaching and unhelpful court decisions is deeply troubling.”
He’s right.
But where was the public—let alone judicial—opprobrium over those remarks?
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
My friends, when I was in government, I was outspoken on the importance of upholding the exclusive, constitutional jurisdiction of provinces.
The EV regulations. The federal Fuel Standard: these were egregious infringements of provincial regulation of specific industries.
Some have been shelved (the EV regulations) … Sort of.
Not the federal Fuel Standard (aka Carbon Tax #2.)
The Oil and Gas Cap is shelved on paper—although the irrational, unreachable federal methane regulations are still in place (which are, in effect, another oil and gas cap by default…)
Bill C-69. Or the no-fossil-fuel-for-power/turn-out-the-lights federal Clean Electricity Regulations.
These are still very much on the books. Insidious red tape. And part of a mentality that is thwarting major projects and investment in our country.
Capital flight to the US is off the charts!
The “bureaucracy,” Dominic LeBlanc mused last week, is slowing the Canada’s ability to boost the economy!
Quel surprise.
For my part, seeking the outright REPEAL of economically harmful legislation was my fight, including with the Saskatchewan First Act, to uphold the rule of law. Constitutionally-speaking.
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
I did also try to raise the alarm about UNDRIP.
My argument was that provinces could not accept Bill C-69, for example, because UNDRIP is baked into it.
Same with the benign-sounding ‘round tables’ that the feds were always proposing to provinces—but whose quid pro quo was always adherence to UNDRIP. Same with equivalency agreements. And most MOUs.
“Don’t worry, little lady,” was the attitude of many colleagues and bureaucrats. “It’s just a non-binding treaty.”
Until it wasn’t.
Which brings us back to judicial ‘over-reach.
And of course, in the upholding of impartiality, some judges are brave, are bold.
One was Ontario Justice Maria Carrocia, who acquitted five junior hockey players last year.
“The slogan ‘Believe the victim’ has no place in a criminal trial,” she wrote. “To assume that the complainant is telling the truth is the equivalent of imposing a presumption of guilt on the person accused.” That is “antithetical to the fundamental principles of justice.”
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
Another was Justice Paul Bychok of the Nunavut Court of Justice, who last year raised the alarm about the effect of the Gladue principle on Indigenous women, who are abused or killed by Indigenous men.
“Far too many reported cases give mere lip service to victims of domestic and sexual violence,” he wrote. “Colonialism’s legacy has affected Inuit women and girls every bit as much as Inuit men.”
In the United Kingdom—clearly in the throes of debate, these days, about “two-tier justice”—a Labour Justice minister tried to challenge a “sentencing council” of bureaucrats, who were pushing to embed special-treatment-consideration of “intergenerational trauma”—but only for certain defendants.
When the minister tried to buck that, she was accused of threatening the council’s “independence.”
And so it goes. Oh, for a Notwithstanding Clause.
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001
My friends:
If we take the fundamental precepts, about the pursuit of equal justice—and improving it, and speaking out in its defence: if we take that to heart, we must question. We must criticize. Diplomatically, but sometimes forcefully.
And be bold.
There will always be pressure, by the “Château Clique”—in whatever form—to belong; to be good Canadians (particularly in the West). To respect our “betters.” Tow the line.
But, as Margaret Thatcher said, “God needs no faint hearts for His ambassadors.”
What John A. called the “constitutional spirit” demands more, not less, debate.
So, let’s channel Cartier and Macdonald.
Rebels with a cause.
Fils de la Liberté.
« O Canada! Mon pays! Mes amours!»
- 0116 IBEW 300116 IBEW 30
- 0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY0115 SaskPower SASPO_2817_PLT_Recruitment_DIVERSITY
- 0114 Prospera Bold Vision0114 Prospera Bold Vision
- 0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer0113 Miller Epic Cinematic Hollywood trailer
- 0111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 010111 2026 SK Oil Show booth promo 01
- 0085 Turnbull snow removal call office0085 Turnbull snow removal call office
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001