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|Monday May19, 2003 | BACK | NEXT
"MARTIN'S
33% SOLUTION" Sources told The Hill Times last week that Mr. Martin (LaSalle-Émard, Que.) will follow a very clear criteria in forming a Martin Cabinet. It's called the "33 per cent solution," because a total of 33 per cent of Grit backbenchers will be brought into Cabinet in an effort to address the so-called "democratic deficit," another 33 per cent will be drawn from outside the House and made up of entirely new blood and new ideas, and the final 33 per cent will come from the current Cabinet. As has been widely reported, imminent changes at the top of the Liberal Party of Canada and inside the government have raised the hopes of many MPs about the new opportunities and possibilities in getting a government post. With the support of at least 76 per cent of the caucus, or 129 of the 169 MPs in the House of Commons, Mr. Martin might have some problems in trying to keeping all the MPs happy. Moreover, MPs aren't about the constant speculation that former New Brunswick Premier Frank McKenna will be brought into a Martin Cabinet. The attention that the former premier of the New Brunswick is receiving from Mr. Martin himself and the people around him doesn't sit well with many MPs who consider Mr. McKenna an outsider. "While we work hard in shaking this place up," one Martin-supporting MP told The Hill Times last week, "he is making money in the private sector. Having him in the government with many MPs again left out is giving the wrong message." But, according to one top source, Mr. Martin is committed to "opening up the process and promoting many MPs who deserve a chance." At the same time, however, the source said, in forming the government, Mr. Martin seems to be "committed also to other factors, including tabling some new ideas, introducing new faces and giving continuity to the Liberal government." Currently the Cabinet is made up of 39, including the Prime Minister, and assuming that Mr. Martin will stick to the "33 per cent solution," it means that 13 ministers already in Cabinet will retain their position, there will be 13 new faces, like Mr. McKenna, and 13 backbenchers will be promoted to the Cabinet. According to the latest numbers in The Hill Times' list of Who Supports Whom in the Liberal Leadership Race, Mr. Martin enjoys the support of 129 MPs, including 21 Cabinet ministers. This means that more than half of the ministers currently in Cabinet will be dumped and, including some of the ministers who now support Mr. Martin. Obviously, not all the MPs supporting the former minister of finance will end up in government. According to the last changes, at the present time there are 129 MPs supporting Mr. Martin, a total of nine MPs support John Manley (Ottawa South, Ont.), a total of six MPs support Sheila Copps (Hamilton East, Ont.), three have officially declered themselves "neutral," because of their involvement with the leadership convention. A total of 22 are still undecided/undeclared.The convention to elect the new leader will take place in Toronto next November, while the selection of the delegates will be wrapped up in September. |