I think Canada in all its diversity (industries, geographies, economies, etc.) NEEDS an upper house to balance the powers of the House of Commons, the PMO and the Supreme Court. Canada does NOT need the Senate it has. We cannot look to the tiny, more homogeneous nation (in those respects) of New Zealand as a model and simply abolish the Senate. While it would be an improvement, it would not be ideal.
Abolish the one we have in order to make a new one? That seems the only logical solution. I don't think we can reform it piecemeal and depend on future governments to keep that ball rolling.
You don't slowly peel off a band-aid...
The question is, can we put a formula together that fits Canada's needs? Even saying that Ontario should get x number is inadequate because they could all come from Toronto. In provinces with extreme diversity we'd have to take into account those areas and try to provide representation. All the while, we need to keep in mind that an upper house is SUPPOSED to be regional. It will be difficult to explain to the population why Saskatchewan and Manitoba get the same number of Senators as Ontario, for example.
I know, I'm getting ahead of myself...
Anyway, if it starts it will be tough, but it would definitely be worthwhile. Canada needs to leave the 19th Century behind and move into the Third Millennium.
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