Should taxpayer-funded advertising include party logos?

[robert_viera]

In addition to being able to send out newsletters and flyers at the taxpayers' expense, MPs are allowed to spend up to 10% of their office budgets on advertising. Here is a description of the entitlement from the 2008-2009 report on MPs expenditures:

(3) ADVERTISING ─ allows Members to communicate with their constituents about their office location and contact information, assistance and services they provide and meeting announcements related to the discharge of their constituency functions, and to issue congratulatory messages or greetings to constituents and opinions or statements in support of their parliamentary functions. The Advertising Expenses Account is limited to 10% of the Member’s Office Budget.

Here is a sample of the kind of ads my local MP, Patrick Brown, has run in the local daily newspaper, the Barrie Examiner:

http://static.zooomr.com/images/8586263_34ce9614be_b.jpg

This ad ran at the bottom of the front page in the November 30, 2007 issue and spanned the full width of the page. You'll notice in the lower left corner that there is a Conservative Party logo:

http://static.zooomr.com/images/8586267_8e7cc4fa13_m.jpg

I went back and checked old issues of the paper and found that Mr. Brown had run advertisements like this one 47 times between July 25, 2006 and September 6, 2008. 45 of the ads appeared on the front page, 2 appeared on the second page, and all included the Conservative Party logo in the lower left. In addition, Mr. Brown ran 2 full page ads, one in January 2007 and one in September 2008 which incorporated the Conservative Party logo in a similar fashion. Prior to July 25, 2006, Mr. Brown ran ads of the same size and in the same position on 7 occasions, but those ads did not include the Conservative Party logo.

It is my belief that these ads were likely paid for out of Mr. Brown's office budget. In February of 2008, Mr. Brown did run a couple of ads which carried the line "Paid for by the Barrie Conservative Electoral District Association", but the ads were different in design, with larger Conservative Party logos and included the address of the party's web site. The Barrie Conservative EDA's 2007 financial statement, which can be viewed on the web site of Elections Canada, lists advertising expenses of $0.00.

Should MPs be allowed to use their office budgets to put their party's logo on the front page of the local newspaper?

Edited November 26, 2009 by robert_viera

[robert_viera]

Here are the top 40 spenders on advertising for 2008-2009:

Yvon       Lévesque        Bloc          34305  
Roger      Gaudet          Bloc          30812  
Meili      Faille          Bloc          30616  
Guy        André           Bloc          30585  
Jim        Flaherty        Conservative  30496  
Robert     Bouchard        Bloc          30492  
Steven     Blaney          Conservative  30400  
Jean-Yves  Laforest        Bloc          30393  
Denis      Lebel           Conservative  30092  
Claude     DeBellefeuille  Bloc          29989  
Pierre     Paquette        Bloc          29983  
André      Bellavance      Bloc          29923  
Raymonde   Folco           Liberal       29685  
Sylvie     Boucher         Conservative  29492  
John       Baird           Conservative  29477  
France     Bonsant         Bloc          29427  
Mario      Laframboise     Bloc          29258  
Christian  Ouellet         Bloc          29233  
Josée      Verner          Conservative  29229  
Louis      Plamondon       Bloc          29146  
Michel     Guimond         Bloc          29140  
Patrick    Brown           Conservative  29123  
Jacques    Gourde          Conservative  29121  
Réal       Ménard          Bloc          29099  
Jean-Yves  Roy             Bloc          29093  
Richard    Nadeau          Bloc          29069  
Maria      Mourani         Bloc          28896  
Robert     Vincent         Bloc          28860  
Monique    Guay            Bloc          28837  
Massimo    Pacetti         Liberal       28826  
Rob        Clarke          Conservative  28803  
Yvon       Godin           NDP           28793  
Christian  Paradis         Conservative  28691  
Johanne    Deschamps       Bloc          28495  
Luc        Malo            Bloc          28457  
Diane      Bourgeois       Bloc          28326  
Carole     Lavallée        Bloc          28271  
Stockwell  Day             Conservative  28255  
Roger      Valley          Liberal       28042  
Ted        Menzies         Conservative  27761  

Source: http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/about/process/house/GeneraLInformation/MembersExpenses-2008-2009-e.pdf

As you can see, the top 40 is dominated by Bloc MPs (24), and to a lesser degree Conservative MPs (12), with only a few Liberals (although one Liberal, Roger Valley, made the top 40 despite only serving for half of the fiscal year), and one NDP MP.

[robert_viera]

5 of the above mentioned 47 advertisements featuring the Conservative logo were to announce a BBQ the MP held in 2007. Here is a photo which appeared on the editorial page of the newspaper:

http://www.zooomr.com/photos/robertviera/8594227/

The photo is of the MP at the BBQ event standing next to one of his Conservative campaign signs. This photo raises another issue. Should MPs be allowed to use taxpayer-funded advertising to promote partisan events?

[Oleg Bach]

Give all the cry babies logos - maybe even grant them all a coat of arms..a great herald over their bed ...with their name on it...how can it hurt giving a child a gold star once in a while - just make sure that it's not made from real gold.

[Oleg Bach]

Give every member of Parliment a crown and a purple robe... In fact we should stop refereing to them in the legalist slang as "my friend" - They have no friends--- once you run for public office - all friendship and loyality is left at the door - but you do get a title though....lets call them KINGS and QUEENS..They function like a chess board with no pawns other than us.

[Goat Boy©]

Here are the top 40 spenders on advertising for 2008-2009:

Source: http://www.parl.gc.ca/information/about/process/house/GeneraLInformation/MembersExpenses-2008-2009-e.pdf

As you can see, the top 40 is dominated by Bloc MPs (24), and to a lesser degree Conservative MPs (12), with only a few Liberals (although one Liberal, Roger Valley, made the top 40 despite only serving for half of the fiscal year), and one NDP MP.

I am speechless that my Liberal MP isn't on that list, if he didn't make it those folks are serious offenders. In response to the question, my opinion is a very big NO.

I was collecting them from the junk mail box beside my mail box for a while. Sent them all back, the Liberals got a note asking them to recycle and be 'green', couldn't think of a good line for the Torys.

[robert_viera]

I am speechless that my Liberal MP isn't on that list, if he didn't make it those folks are serious offenders. In response to the question, my opinion is a very big NO.

I was collecting them from the junk mail box beside my mail box for a while. Sent them all back, the Liberals got a note asking them to recycle and be 'green', couldn't think of a good line for the Torys.

Those aren't the expenses for MP mailings. The mailings come under the heading 'Printing', not 'Advertising'. Incidentally, who is your MP?

[Goat Boy©]

Those aren't the expenses for MP mailings. The mailings come under the heading 'Printing', not 'Advertising'. Incidentally, who is your MP?

I'd prefer not to say.

[robert_viera]

I'd prefer not to say.

OK. The only Liberal MP in the top 40 spenders on printing is Sukh Dhaliwal (#40). The next after him is Raymonde Folco (#75).

[Oleg Bach]

I am speechless that my Liberal MP isn't on that list, if he didn't make it those folks are serious offenders. In response to the question, my opinion is a very big NO.

I was collecting them from the junk mail box beside my mail box for a while. Sent them all back, the Liberals got a note asking them to recycle and be 'green', couldn't think of a good line for the Torys.

I just want to know who's printing those huge telephone books that we all toss in the garbage?

[Goat Boy©]

I just want to know who's printing those huge telephone books that we all toss in the garbage?

Yeah that too.