NDP Leader Jack Layton hopes prorogation motion springboard to reform

New Democratic leader Jack Layton asks a question during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday March 18, 2010. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

EDMONTON - Federal NDP Leader Jack Layton hopes a motion that would make it harder to prorogue Parliament will help get more Canadians involved in the political process.

The NDP motion requiring the prime minister to seek the consent of the House of Commons to shut down Parliament for longer than seven days was passed in the House last Wednesday.

The motion is not binding on Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who has said that only a constitutional amendment could rein in the prime minister's prorogation power.

Harper sparked an angry public backlash when he announced Dec. 30 that he was proroguing Parliament until March 3 - almost six weeks later than it had been scheduled to resume business after the Christmas break.

Layton, speaking during a stop in Edmonton Sunday, said the prime minister has left a bitter taste in the mouths of Canadians who are concerned about the health of parliamentary democracy.

He says the motion is an important first step in tapping into what he sees as a growing desire by Canadians to bring about parliamentary reform in areas such as the Senate.