Liberal MP Pat O'Brien brought forward a private members' bill Wednesday that might actually be popular enough with MPs on all sides of the House to pass.
Mr. O'Brien, who hails from London, Ont., is asking that beginning next year, a day be put aside as a national holiday during the winter to help Canadians get through those long, dreary months.
He suggests either March 17 (St. Patrick's Day) or Feb. 15 (Flag Day) as possible dates.
Feb. 15 marks the day in 1965 when the Maple Leaf was first officially raised on Parliament Hill, replacing the old British Union Jack, or its unofficial offshoot, the Canadian Red Ensign.
Mr. O'Brien said he wants a period set aside for consultation with Canadians.
He seemed to get robust enthusiasm for his bill in the House of Commons. However, it is rare for a private member's bill to pass.
Since 1980 there have been more than 5,000 private members' bills tabled in the House of Commons. Fewer than 2 per cent of those passed, and even then the government is not beholden to follow their guidelines.
Flag Day has already been tossed about by other Canadians as a possible national holiday. A Flag Day petition is ongoing at www.petitiononline.com/32623262/petition.html.
The petition states, in part: “National Flag of Canada Day would ... create a much-needed long weekend falling roughly halfway between Christmas and Easter, a welcome break during our longest season. “
The last day that Canadians got a new statutory national holiday was in 1957 when Parliament decreed that Thanksgiving Monday would be a day off.
