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For Immediate Release
Contact: Dylan Penner, Media Officer,E-mail:,dpenner@canadians.org

Broken Covenant: Blistering report on 9 years of Harper agenda

Hot on the heels of the Conservative defeat in Alberta, Maude Barlow is calling on Canadians to send the federal Tories packing as well. Her new report, Broken Covenant: How Stephen Harper Set out to Silence Dissent and Curtail Democratic Participation, outlines the damage done to all aspects of Canada's democracy under Harper's watch.

OTTAWA

Hot on the heels of the Conservative defeat in Alberta, Maude Barlow is calling on Canadians to send the federal Tories packing as well. Her new report, Broken Covenant: How Stephen Harper Set out to Silence Dissent and Curtail Democratic Participation, outlines the damage done to all aspects of Canada's democracy under Harper's watch.

"Stephen Harper has clear-cut an entire movement. Like an old growth forest, the complex and intricate landscape that made up the civil society/federal government relationship took decades to create. Like a clear-cut, the damage was meant to be absolute. And like a clear-cut, there is no easy blueprint for how to rebuild the rich and multifaceted diversity that made it unique," writes Barlow in the report.

A scathing indictment of nine years of the Harper agenda, Broken Covenant examines the Harper government's impact on our democratic institutions, families and workers, women, First Nations, the environment, health care, arts and culture, farmers, human rights and social equality.

Broken Covenant tells the story of "a government bent on forever changing the relationship between our elected officials and the citizens it represents." Thorough and accessible, this 32-page report is a critical tool for any and all Canadians who insist that this country reflects their needs and interests.

The report is being released in conjunction with the Go Vote 2015 public forums currently being held across the country. Hosted by the Council of Canadians, the Public Service Alliance of Canada, Unifor, the Canadian Union of Public Employees, and the Directors Guild of Canada, the forums are rallying Canadians to register to vote. As shown in Alberta, voters can make massive electoral change possible.

The report may be accessed here: https://canadians.org/broken-covenant

Founded in 1985, the Council of Canadians is Canada's leading social action organization, mobilizing a network of 60 chapters across the country.

Office: (613) 233-4487, ext. 249