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And so we are left with the bill that did pass, which has been more or less gutted of any real effect, and at Mr. Chong’s own hand. The task of signing a candidate’s papers will henceforth be assigned to an officer chosen by the party — can there be any doubt it will be the leader, or his trusted designate? Caucuses will vote after each election on whether they wish to avail themselves of the powers to depose the leader and decide their own membership. But if they wouldn’t vote for them now, when they had the chance, why would they do so then, with the leader looking over their shoulders?

Maybe Mr. Chong is right, that a tenth of a loaf is better than none. Maybe there is symbolic import in the bill’s passage — assuming it is not now quietly strangled by the Senate. Maybe the longest journey begins with a single, barely perceptible step. But looking at the way in which Parliament has been tossed around like a rag doll in recent days, it’s hard to imagine MPs suddenly standing up for themselves any time soon.

Consider that on Bill C-51, probably the single most important piece of legislation to be brought forward in this Parliament (I say single, to leave out the omnibus bills that are this government’s preferred legislative vehicle), the people we elect to protect us from arbitrary rule were given a grand total of two hours to debate it at first reading, plus three days at second reading. It now proceeds to committee, which will be permitted to hear all of six hours of expert testimony. This, for a bill that is positively bristling with civil-liberties red flags.