On using one's power

As if the federal government lacked enough reasons to reformulate EI as an actual program rather than a revenue source, any doubt about its constitutional authority to do so has now been removed:

The top court said yesterday that Ottawa was within its rights to use the EI system to provide payments to natural and adoptive parents when they take time off work to care for young children...(T)he Supreme Court said Parliament had the right to adapt EI "to the new realities of the workplace."

According to the article, several groups are already putting forward ways of dealing with the authority. Among the more interesting ones are paying more EI benefits on a percentage basis to low-income earners, and providing for EI when a worker leaves for a short training period.

Of course, the above ideas are a long way from truly fixing EI. There are still plenty more changes which need to be made to make EI more generally accessible. But as a result of the decision and the ensuing reaction, the issue is back in the public eye. And the result has been yet more suggestions to improve what should be a far more effective program.