It is my contention that Canada has already ceased being a democracy. We are already living in a dictatorship presided over by the Prime Minister (Jean Chretien) and a small non-elected clique in the Prime Minister's Office.

Cabinet Ministers are appointed and fired at the discretion of the Prime Minister. They do not even have to be Members of Parliament. None of them dare step out of line for fear of losing their jobs. Government backbenchers are completely useless. They are forced to tow the government line or they get kicked out a la John Nunziata. Rather than representing the people who elected them, they are instruments of the PMO to impose the government agenda on their constituents.

Even the institution of Parliament has become debased. It is completely powerless to do anything against the wishes of the government. Most decisions are implemented by decree. The Prime Minister signs international agreements on behalf of the Canadian people without obtaining their permission via referendum or even parliamentary debate. Parliament has become irrelevant! Bureaucrats in the United States and Europe will be dictating to Canadians what we can or cannot do.

Checks and balances are a pre-requisite for the successful operation of democracies. These are lacking in Canada. We have shown above that Parliament is powerless. The Senate is worse than useless and the laughing stock of Canadians. Canada's justice system has been subverted to satisfy the agenda of the PMO. Indeed, the only checks and balances, that there are, are provided by the ten provincial governments. Perhaps Canadians should be grateful to Quebecers and the Block Quebecois, in particular, for providing some form of check on the federal government.

In this context, the proposal of recall by the Canadian Alliance is a positive step forward. Allowing free votes in Parliament is another good proposal. It is crucial that Canadians regain some form of control over their politicians.

In my opinion,