Canada’s Rowdy Parliament Could Keep Talent Away, Warns Legislator
By Matthew Little
Epoch Times Staff

PARLIAMENT HILL, Ottawa—“Parliament is sick.”

That is the diagnosis of Dr. Keith Martin, Liberal MP for Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca who sat for the Reform and Canadian Alliance parties before crossing the floor to join the Liberals.

He’s not the first to come down hard on the behaviour of MPs representing Canadians in the House of Commons—and he likely won’t be the last if nothing changes. As it is now, Parliament’s most popular hour, question period (QP), looks like a schoolyard shouting match where there is as much insultest debate.

It’s a level of decorum far below that of any comparable Legislature and an embarrassment to all Canadians, Martin says.

“It desperately needs to be changed because if it doesn’t, serious problems in our country will not be dealt with,” Martin told the Epoch Times on Tuesday. (more…)

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by Jane Taber

Stephen Harper signed on to the G8 leaders’ document in Italy last year calling for improvements to maternal health that specifically included contraception and reproductive health services.

And although he has chosen maternal health as his signature initiative for the upcoming G8 summit in Muskoka, he is not including contraception reproductive health issues.

Two of his senior ministers have said that contraception isn’t part of the initiative as the policy is aimed at saving lives. International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda said today the government is not “re-opening the abortion debate.”

Keith Martin, Liberal MP and MD, is angry.

“Harper signed on to an agreement of all the G8 leaders to invest in family planning so he has backtracked on that …,” says Mr. Martin. (more…)

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Helping women abroad doesn’t include support for family planning
Toronto Star
Susan Delacourt – Ottawa Bureau

OTTAWA – Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government appears to have decided that birth control is not part of its plan to help improve the lives of women and children in developing countries.
Opposition critics are accusing Harper of caving to his social-conservative political base at home, at the expense of foreign aid that makes a real difference in the well-being of women and their families. (more…)

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Please see this Macleans article on the Canadian Human Rights Commmissions. My two cents are towards the end of the article.
Thanks,
Keith

A tribunal rules its own hate-speech law is unconstitutional
(more…)

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The following article appeared in the June 8th edition of the Hill Times, in commemoration of World Oceans Day.

Saving our Dying Oceans
By Dr. Keith Martin, MP

Our oceans are dying, and without life in our oceans, life on land will perish. The threats to our marine environment, our global life support system, come` from many sources, but all have one common cause: human activity.
(more…)

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Globe and Mail

April 8, 2009 at 12:53 PM EDT

Adam Radwanski, globeandmail.com: Dr. Martin, thanks for taking the time to elaborate a bit on your call for medicare reform. You wrote this week that the absence of “competition” is holding back our health care system. Are we talking about competition in the form of different providers within the public (single-payer) system, or in the form of private fee-for-service care outside the system for those who can afford it? (more…)

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April 7^th 2009

By Dr. Keith Martin, MP

Contrary to public opinion, Canada does not have “the best health care system in the world.” We actually rank 26th, and yet have the fifth-highest expenditures for health care. So, which countries fare better than us, and why? The Canadian Medical Association (CMA) just examined this question and came up with some fascinating findings.

Of the world’s top 20 national health care systems, 17 are European. These word leaders share some common traits: They all have mixed systems that combine both public and private providers; everyone is covered; no one is hurt financially when they fall ill; and there is the widespread use of information technology, which improves efficiency and reduces errors and cost.

(more…)

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On April 2nd 2009, Dr. Keith Martin, MP introduced a bill in the House of Commons to decriminalize the simple possession of marijuana.

“The ‘war on drugs’ has been a complete failure. It has not reduced the crime rate, drug use, nor has it saved money or lives. Decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of pot and up to two plants will sever the connection between organized crime and casual users of pot. This bill is bad news for criminal gangs, which are the only beneficiaries of the status quo because it would eliminate demand for their product. As a result this bill will significantly undermine the financial underpinnings of organized crime gangs in Canada,” said Dr. Martin.

Under this bill, marijuana possession would still be illegal, but people would receive a fine rather than being passed through the expensive judicial system.

Nationwide studies and House of Commons committees have found that federal drug and crime policies are not working to reduce drug trafficking and harm. Many have overwhelmingly pointed to this course of action. Also, the monies now used to enforce the law for possession of small amounts of pot could be redirected to programs that reduce the incidence of substance abuse.

“In the medical profession our mantra is ‘do no harm’. We are actually doing terrible harm if we continue to address substance abuse uniquely as a criminal issue from the federal level. The blinders have to come off; we have to take a medical perspective if we are going to reduce harm and drug use in Canada.”

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