News

Critics complain that this past weekend's Liberal convention in Vancouver failed to shed enough light on the party's policies under Michael Ignatieff. Liberals counter that they emerged from Vancouver united and invigorated, and that their once mighty organization is quickly being rebuilt under Mr. Ignatieff's leadership.

One Liberal integral to those rebuilding efforts is Navdeep Bains, the Member of Parliament for the Ontario riding of Mississauga-Brampton South.

As co-chair of the Liberals' renewal committee, Mr. Bains successfully campaigned for the party's switch from delegated conventions to "one member, one vote" for future leadership contests. And he is a leading advocate for a "308 riding strategy," which would see the Liberals focus their efforts on regions of the country where they have traditionally had little success.

How ready are the Liberals to fight the next election? How will they attract a broader range of Canadians than have signed up for their party in recent years? Will changing their leadership system really make them more democratic? What more should they be doing to become a more inclusive, grassroots party?

On Thursday, May 7, Mr. Bains joined us on globeandmail.com to address these and other questions from readers about the Liberals' attempts at renewal. Read your questions and his answers below.

First elected federally in June 2004, Navdeep Singh Bains was subsequently re-elected in January 2006 and October 2008. In October 2005, he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister under the Rt. Hon. Paul Martin and sworn in as a Member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada.

Since 2006, Mr. Bains has been appointed the Official Opposition Critic for Public Works and Government Services, Treasury Board, International Trade and Natural Resources, respectively. He also sat on the Caucus Committees for Planning and Priorities, Canada and the World and Economic Prosperity. In January 2007, Mr. Bains was appointed to the National Election Readiness Committee as a Caucus Representative and in March 2007 served as the Youth Liaison to the Young Liberals of Canada.

In January 2009, Mr Bains was appointed Co-Chair of the Special Committee on Party Renewal and tasked with leading a comprehensive process to consult with the membership and create a stronger Liberal Party. In March 2009, Mr. Bains was appointed Chair of Platform Development and given responsibility for managing the creation of the party's next election platform.

Editor's Note: globeandmail.com editors will read and allow or reject each question/comment. Comments/questions may be edited for length or clarity. HTML is not allowed. We will not publish questions/comments that include personal attacks on participants in these discussions, that make false or unsubstantiated allegations, that purport to quote people or reports where the purported quote or fact cannot be easily verified, or questions/comments that include vulgar language or libellous statements. Preference will be given to readers who submit questions/comments using their full name and home town, rather than a pseudonym.

Stephen Wicary, globeandmail.com: Mr. Bains, welcome and thanks for taking the time to join us today. Several readers have already written, so let's get straight to their questions.

Dan Laurin from Windsor writes: Mr Bains I am very happy with the way our Liberal Party has turned itself  around. I have been a Liberal party member and supporter since 1982 working on Mr. Axworthy's campaign in Winnipeg.

I believe Mr Ignatieff has chosen a perfect vehicle to cause an election. With almost 1.5 million Canadians out of work EI reform is an important issue and the Bloc and NDP cannot back down and support Harper over this. With the Liberal Party out of debt and the polls showing surging Liberal support will this mean that after the June Economic report card the government will fall and we will have a summer election?

I think this would be  best for the country as we can campaign and vote during what would normally be the summer recess anyway. In September the new Liberal government (hopefully a majority) can get to the business of running the country as it should be run.

Liberal MP Navdeep Bains: Dan, I appreciate your support.  Mr. Ignatieff is pushing the important issue of EI reform at a time when Canadians need it like never before. We are not seeking an election but will continue to hold the Conservatives to account and demand changes that we believe are in the best interests of Canadians. Of course in order for there to be an election all the opposition parties have to vote against the Government and recently both the NDP and the Bloc have shown an interest in supporting the Conservatives on certain issues. So time will tell.

R. Carriere from the Maritimes writes: Good afternoon, Mr. Bains. First and foremost, thank you for taking time and engaging us Globe and Mail political junkies; I can only hope several other MPs follow your lead.

That said, last weekend Mr. Ignatieff mentioned that a full costed policy platform will be ready next month. A simple question: Will Mr. Ignatieff begin to share any of these policy positions public ally, or will he continue on the same road of what has been deemed speaking  only in 'broad generalities'?

Also, past election results show the Liberal Party as one with strength in the urban areas of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver with very little support outside these direct urban areas - hence your wise 308 philosophy. Understanding that Rome was not built in a day, can you offer some specifics on your policies moving forward to attract more than these diverse urban voters?

Navdeep Bains: R. Carriere, a platform is a strategic document used in the context of an election campaign so I think you'll have to wait until an election to see the finished product. However Mr. Ignatieff has already been talking about specific policy initiatives like one national qualifying standard for EI, a commitment to early learning and pay equity and talking about grand unifying projects like high speed rail. 

In terms of building outside the urban centres, at the Vancouver convention we passed two major initiatives that should help with those efforts. The first is a weighted, one member, one vote system which means that in future leadership contests every member of the party will have a voice in the selection of the leader. The "weighted" part respects the regions and provides an incentive to grow our membership in those areas. The second initiative uploads administrative services from our provincial and territorial associations leaving them with the resources to put more boots on the ground in areas where we haven't had as strong of a presence.

Carl Moores from St. John's writes: I have been a card carrying Liberal for a number of years and have always felt that the party (until very recently) was distant towards it's own members. The recent mailing of lifetime cards was a nice touch but felt a little disingenuous. What future changes will the party make to better reach out to the everyday, middle-class members?

Navdeep Bains: Carl, One of the biggest changes we've made to involve our grassroots happened in Vancouver where we adopted a weighted one member, one vote system for future leadership contests. That means that every member of the party now has a direct voice in the selection of the leader. Our team is also making a concentred effort to involve the grassroots in policy development such as on our members-only discussion site En Famille. This is an ongoing process but our members should know that we're open for business and we want their ideas.

Charif El-Khouri from Gatineau writes: One can argue that his early willingness to acknowledge the existence of a Quebecois nation and the spirit of his approach to the thorny issue of Quebec nationalism (not caring which allegiance people put forth for example, provided they be both Quebecers and Canadians) are behind Michael Ignatieff's popularity in the province.

The EI proposal, his new book, the insistence on a 308 ridings strategy, and his convention speech, however, all point towards a strategy of emphasizing the country's unity and playing the card of Canadian patriotism (nationalism?)

Any potential for a clash of philosophies on this matter and a Quebec backlash, especially as party policy and vision start being emphasized in more and more details in the months to come? Can this turn out to be a Bloc boost eventually?

Navdeep Bains: Charif, Michael believes in the greatness of Canada and doesn't get hung-up whether Quebecers, Manitobans or anyone else for that matter identify with their province. Canadians have had 3 years of Conservatives trying to play the politics of division. Michael does not operate that way and would rather speak to what we can achieve together. Quebeckers can see themselves as part of that vision and I think that has a lot of appeal. The Bloc can only offer perpetual opposition, the Liberal Party under Michael Ignatieff offers Quebeckers a party where they can have a seat at the table and therefore have a say in the running of the country.

Mike from Waterloo writes: The recent changes (308 seat strategy, and one vote per member) are all good things. However, I think inspiring policy is critical at winning the hearts and minds of the electorate.

I feel past Liberal dominance was built upon effective policy development, based on extensive collaboration. The famous 'Red Book' is an example. The extensive collaboration had people of all walks of life contributing. That in-turn gave a direction for Canada that appealed to everyone. The key is including many voices in the policy discussion.

As a potential grass-roots supporter I would like to express my ideas to the party. Yet, according to the website a convention in Vancouver is the only venue I can express my views. There is no information on how membership will allow me to voice my ideas to the party. Accordingly this is discouraging.

What value and emphasis is the Liberal Party puting on being open to my comments? If there is value why doesn't the website outline the ways I can contribute?

Navdeep Bains: Mike, We are pursuing a collaborative attempt to policy development and are involving many different inputs. The party has a formalized policy development process but no one has a monopoly on good ideas. As Chair of Platform Development I am soliciting ideas from the party, the caucus and the Leader.

If you have specific policy ideas feel free to submit them to me directly.  You can also contact Joan Bourassa, National Policy Chair to talk about further input to the party process. There are so many ways of getting involved but one of the ways you can help the most is by becoming active in your riding association and developing policy ideas in your community. 

M Samra from Woodbridge writes: Navdeep, How much inspiration did you draw from the 50-state strategy currently being used by the Democrats in the United States for the 308-riding strategy? Also, what obstacles do you see with this strategy in traditional Conservative strongholds (such as Alberta)?

Navdeep Bains: M. Samra, Howard Dean spoke at our 2006 convention on the 50 state strategy and I think that had a big influence on the way we see ourselves. More importantly the 308 riding strategy was a message we heard from Liberal members across the country. They said that in order to truly be competitive the Liberal Party has to be active in every riding not just our traditional areas. 

There are a lot of places that haven't been targeted by us in the past and that has resulted in a vicious circle of never building the appropriate infrastructure which results in lacklustre campaigns. By having a presence in every riding we can work on long term plans to tap into these communities, listen to their concerns and show them that the Liberal Party has something to offer everyone and that we are a strong national party.

Adrian Ludwin from Toronto writes: Hi Mr. Bains, you became chair of platform development in March, and Mr. Ignatieff's now saying the platform will be ready by June. What kind of process do you go through to pull a platform together in this amount of time?

Navdeep Bains: Adrian, It has meant many late nights but we have been involving the party, the caucus, the campaign team and the Leader himself.  Ultimately it is a lot of meetings and a lot of reading but my job is to pull together all these great ideas and present them to the Leader with analysis and insight. We are working to tight deadlines but I am privileged to work with a lot of very bright people which makes it a little easier. This is about us being prepared should an election be called and giving the Leader the tools he needs to hold the government to account. 

Stephen Wicary, globeandmail.com: We are, unfortunately, running out of time. Thanks to you, Navdeep, for engaging with our readers, and to all of them as well for writing in. 

Obviously, the big story for the Liberals in the past couple of days has been the Ruby Dhalla affair, so I'd be remiss if I didn't ask about it before we wrap up. You and Ms. Dhalla hail from nearby ridings; what are your constituents saying about it? Do you think the reaction - from my colleagues in the media, from your rivals in other parties and from fellow Liberals - has been fair?

Navdeep Bains: Stephen, As the matter is currently under investigation I think it would be inappropriate for me to comment at the time.
 
Both Ruby and the Leader are treating this issue with the seriousness it deserves. She has stepped aside from her critic responsibilities in order to work to clear her name with the relevant officials. Ruby will have the support of the caucus as the facts of the matter are determined.