LETHBRIDGE AB: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is calling on Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi to make his position on the federal Senate clear to Albertans.

“Albertans are being asked a referendum question about whether to abolish the federal Senate, but we haven’t heard from Nenshi on this,” said Kris Sims, CTF Alberta Director. “We have heard from federal NDP Leader Avi Lewis that the Senate should be abolished, but nothing from Nenshi.”

On Oct. 19, Albertans will be voting on nine referendum questions.

Question seven reads: “Do you support the Government of Alberta working with the governments of other willing provinces to amend the Canadian Constitution to abolish the unelected federal Senate?”

The NDP has long maintained that the federal Senate in Ottawa should be abolished.

Under newly-minted leader, Avi Lewis, the federal NDP continues to advocate for abolishing the Senate, stating: “The Senate is an archaic institution that violates the most basic principles of democratic government.”

The late former leader of the NDP, Jack Layton, also called for the Senate to be scrapped, calling it “outdated and obsolete, a 19th-century institution that has no place in a modern democracy in the 21st century.”

Former Saskatchewan premier and member of Parliament, Tommy Douglas, was a founder of the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation which evolved into today’s NDP.

The CCF’s foundational platform, the Regina Manifesto of 1933, states Canada must “amend the Constitution to abolish the Senate.” 

A search of the Alberta NDP’s news release website along with a search of Nenshi’s online X account show no mention of the Senate referendum question.

The CTF has repeatedly asked Nenshi’s team what his party’s stance is on the Senate referendum question, but has not yet received a reply.

“If we have Reform Party founder Preston Manning saying it’s time for Albertans to send a strong message to Ottawa to abolish the Senate and Avi Lewis agrees, it’s time for Nenshi to state the obvious and confirm he’s in favour of scrapping the Senate,” said Sims. “The Senate costs too much money, it’s undemocratic and all attempts to fix it have failed, so it’s time to abolish it.”

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