Trudeau taps Quebec senator as Liberal governments new representative in upper chamber – The Globe and Mail

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks to members of caucus on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, on Jan. 23, 2020.

Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is tapping Senator Marc Gold, a constitutional law expert and former chair of the Jewish Federations of Canada, to serve as the Liberal governments representative in the Red Chamber.

The Quebec senator replaces Senator Peter Harder, who announced he was stepping down from the role in November after three years in the position to allow for some new blood. Mr. Harder remains a senator.

Mr. Gold was appointed to the Senate on the advice of Mr. Trudeau in November 2016 and has been a member of the Independent Senators Group.

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As Mr. Trudeaus representative in the Red Chamber, Mr. Gold will be responsible for advancing the Liberal governments legislative agenda in the Senate, where the majority of Canadas 105 senators are unaffiliated with any of the major parties.

Mr. Harders dual role as a nominally Independent senator who handled the Liberal governments business had come under criticism from the remaining Conservative senators.

Senator Golds long record of personal and professional achievement, together with his commitment to promoting human rights and Canadas regional diversity, will help us find common ground in the Senate as we invest in and protect our communities, create good middle-class jobs and fight climate change, Mr. Trudeau said in a statement.

I look forward to working with him to build a better Canada for all Canadians.

Mr. Trudeau still has the task of filling empty seats in the Red Chamber to reach a full complement of senators. Two Conservative senators retired in early November: New Brunswicks Paul McIntyre and British Columbias Richard Neufeld. There will be seven more retirements slated for this year.

A memo provided to Mr. Trudeau shortly after his re-election noted that overall, 24 vacancies are expected to pop up by the end of 2023. That does not include other senators who may step down prior to reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75.

The Liberals reworked part of the Senate appointments process shortly after taking office in late 2015 by allowing people to apply for open seats.

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Ultimately, the prime minister has final say on whose name he puts forward for the Senate, which is an appointment made officially by the Governor-General. That has not changed from the previous process that existed under the Conservatives and other governments before them.

Mr. Trudeau has chosen 50 senators under the understanding they would be called upon to play their role independent of partisan influence, officials wrote in the briefing material, obtained by The Canadian Press under the Access to Information Act.

That cohort coalesced into an affiliation known as the Independent Senators Group, or ISG.

If there are no early retirements, changes in affiliation, or expulsions, the Independent Senators Group will continue to hold the majority of seats in the Senate for the duration of the next mandate, the memo reads.

The memo also notes that the Liberal platform promised to amend the Parliament of Canada Act to reflect the Senates new, non-partisan role. However, the remainder of what officials wrote has been redacted from the document because it is deemed sensitive government advice.

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Trudeau taps Quebec senator as Liberal governments new representative in upper chamber - The Globe and Mail