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In a recent Op-Ed piece Queens University Law Professor Bruce Pardy wrote,
“Since the Constitution does not protect property rights, governments can take property away simply by passing a law saying that they can. Expropriation statutes exist in jurisdictions across Canada. They provide governments with the authority to confiscate property and prescribe the conditions under which they will provide compensation for the taking. We have built a constitutional menace. Property rights, abandoned for political expediency, have no constitutional status. Fee simple is merely a gloss on the state’s authority to do with your property as it wishes. In contrast, aboriginal rights, thanks to our courts, have become more powerful than any Charter right.” (Emphasis Added) (Read full article here: https://www.fraserinstitute.org/commentary/aboriginal-title-has-become-constitutional-threat-canada)
Many Canadians are not aware of this fundamental flaw in our constitution. The protection of property rights, one would have thought, would be on the top of mind when Pierre E. Trudeau led the coalition for the Charter of Rights. It was on top of mind for many but it was ultimately dismissed. However, s. 35 was added to the Constitution Act 1982 which recognized existing aboriginal and treaty rights. That provision has been increasingly added to by the Supreme Court of Canada so much so that a recent court in New Brunswick has come close to saying that aboriginal rights supersede private property rights. This has serious implications going forward. Whether the Supreme Court of Canada, and/or other courts will take up that argument in the future is an open question.
Professor Pardy joined Barry to discuss this recent development and also the prospect of Canada becoming the 51st state. Professor Pardy asks whether Canadians would be better off under the American Constitution than under the Canadian Constitution. Now there is a provocative thought for our turbulent times!
Please note the views expressed by the individual(s) in this video are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views or principles of the First Freedoms Foundation.
Bruce Pardy’s work can be found at:
https://www.rightsprobe.org/
X.com: @pardybruce
