Backsliding

- **February 2025**
- Doug Ford:
- Early drafts of Bill 5 ("Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act") leaked.
- Plans to override local planning and environmental checks.
- Critics warn of executive overreach (Warning Sign #7: erosion of constitutional norms).
- Mark Carney:
- Signals plan to accelerate trade reform.
- Introduces “One Canadian Economy Act” to streamline internal trade and remove provincial barriers (Warning Sign #10: undermining provincial autonomy).

- **March 2025**
- Carney becomes Prime Minister after Trudeau’s resignation.
- Promises proportional representation.
- Begins consolidating power through rapid executive orders (Warning Sign #4: politicizing civil service; #7: extraordinary powers).
- Rhetoric around border security tightens.
- Discussions begin on Bill C‑2 (Warning Sign #9: “us vs. them” narrative emerges).

- **April 2025**
- Doug Ford:
- Tabled Bill 10 to centralize judicial appointments.
- Legal community protests against this move (Warning Sign #2: undermining judicial independence).
- Carney:
- Federal cabinet reshuffle places loyalists in key national security and trade posts (Warning Sign #4).

- **May 2025**
- Doug Ford:
- Bill 10 passes first reading.
- Civil society protests frame this as a threat to judicial independence.
- Carney:
- Announces draft of Bill C‑2, combining migration restrictions with digital surveillance tools (Warning Sign #6: state surveillance expansion; #9: “us vs. them” framing).

- **June 2025**
- Doug Ford:
- Bill 5 passes, granting ministers authority to override local laws for economic zones (Warning Sign #7; #10).
- Carney:
- Bill C‑2 introduced in Parliament.
- Criticized for warrantless metadata collection and mail searches (Warning Sign #6).

- **July 2025**
- Carney:
- Bill C‑2 advances through committee.
- Over 300 civil rights groups oppose, warning of creeping authoritarianism.
- Discussions begin to resurrect online harms legislation, raising censorship concerns (potential future Warning Sign #1: delegitimizing or regulating critical media).

**Summary of key trends (Feb–Jul 2025):**
- Expansion of executive power and erosion of oversight (Ford: Bill 5 & Bill 10; Carney: One Canadian Economy Act).
- Increased surveillance and border control justified by crisis narratives (Carney: Bill C‑2).
- Polarizing language toward migrants and critics.
- These layered, gradual changes show considerable democratic backsliding, which could easily worsen, especially if future crises enable further emergency measures.

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anonymous Political July 16, 2025 at 2:00 pm 0 0