Policy Convention, First Blow

The first (not unexpected) challenge to the basic principles agreed to in the merger between the PC Party and Alliance Party has come out of the working groups at the Conservative Party policy convention.

Under the merger agreement, delegates to national meetings would be allocated on an equal basis per riding, regardless of any factor (membership, riding size, population, etc). This is a policy with a long history in the finest of PC Party tradition – equal representation to all areas of the country. Its a stand I fully support.

Scott Reid, MP and long time Harper supporter, lent his support and helped drive a motion restricting delegates:

• Maximum of 10 per riding for ridings > 100 members
• Maximum of 1 per every 10 members for ridings with < 100 members

During the merger negotiations, MacKay insisted on the equality clause for the ridings and it was one of the potential “deal-breakers” during the merger talks. “It goes completely against the agreement in principle, so quite frankly I’m disappointed that somebody [Reid] who was so involved in the actual process and knows how adamant a feeling there was that we needed to have equal representation in all of the ridings would do this,” MacKay told reporters. More >

The motion was passed by those present in the working group; it now moves to the plenary for a vote by the full assembly on Saturday where all such motions must pass by a so-called “double majority” – a majority of delegates present and a majority of provinces represented.

The motion must be defeated. I wish I was there to help this weekend.