House full of newbies

Surveying the bios of sitting members of Parliament, the Public Policy Forum found that 67.5 per cent of MPs have been elected since 2004 and almost one-quarter were voted in for the first time in last October’s election. Only three per cent really rate as old hands, with more than 15 years experience. Most jumped to politics from the private sector. “The old complaint used to be that there were too many career politicians," said forum chief executive David Mitchell. But now rather than too little “real-life experience,” he wonders if too few possess a deep understanding of Parliament.

Ottawa Citizen