Town hall success

Photo: Facebook - Stephen Fuhr CD MP

A town hall meeting on electoral reform was well-attended with engaged Okanagan residents, according to local MP Stephen Fuhr.

The Liberal MP says the Monday night event had one of the better turn outs for town hall meetings on this issue across the country.

Mark Holland, parliamentary secretary to the minister of democratic institutions, also attended the event and was pleased with the voter knowledge, according to Fuhr.

“There were less questions about process at this meeting, because there has been a lot of controversy about the process,” explained Fuhr.

“The initial committee was put together on traditional composition and we amended that to allow parties with nonofficial status to join, such as the Greens and the Bloc.”

Fuhr says once the public understood how the committee would function it made way for a more educated discussion.

“Other town halls have asked questions such as, how did you make up the committee? How long will the committee sit? How long will they report?,” said Fuhr of the past town hall meetings that have taking place around Canada.

The event that took place Monday at UBC Okanagan, focused on opinions on the outcome of electoral reform.

“People expressed how they felt about mandatory voting, electronic voting, the different types of electoral reform such as proportional representation.”

To be fair, said Fuhr, the committee process hadn’t been as widely discussed before town halls that might have taken place in weeks past. .

“Each week that goes by, the committee makeup and process is becoming more familiar,” said Fuhr.

Regardless of the information now available, Holland tells Fuhr that the Kelowna town hall was ‘outstanding’.

“He does a lot of these town halls and he was very encouraged not only by the attendance, but the involvement of opinion of what Canadians want.”

Given the success, Fuhr does not know if he will hold another town hall meeting on electoral reform, saying there are many more issues he would like to discuss in the meantime.

“This event went very well and given the outcome I would have to see what the demand would be in order to put it before another issue.”

Fuhr explains that the electoral reform committee has to deliver a product by December of this year, that will then be tabled in parliament where recommendations will be made and debated on.