A mailing list that should be axed

People these days are so overwhelmed by junk deliveries in their e-mail inbox, the old paper variety almost seems a quaint thing of the past.

Not so. The federal Liberals are reminding Canadians it is still alive and well and costing them money. And considering these political leaflets go straight into the recycling in most households, that means it's costing them money needlessly.

In the House of Commons' Opposition Day last week, the party introduced a number of motions, among them to eliminate MP postal privileges outside their ridings. Their target is the leaflets political parties are able to mass mail to Canadian households, known as "10-per-centers." They claim it would save millions of dollars a year in taxpayers' money - not a bad saving for something that wouldn't be missed. The cost of the mailings has more than doubled to over $10 million a year during the four years the Conservatives have been in office.

But the party also is picking on something that is more than just fluff. These leaflets are, no surprise, partisan, propagandist and in fact inflammatory in the "information" they provide.

Subjects in the recent past have included some unsubstantiated claims - such as Liberals claiming the government was sending First Nations body bags instead of flu vaccine during the H1N1 pandemic and Conservatives implying that Liberal policies are anti-Semitic.

According to a report from The Canadian Press, figures presented in the Commons show the mass mailings have been used disproportionately by Conservative MPs, who racked up 62 per cent of all printing costs on 10-per-centers last year despite holding only 45 per cent of the seats in Parliament.

It might not be a massive expenditure, but neither is it small change. Consider also that it's a needless use of trees and something that just adds to the waste stream - most Canadians would be quite content to get along without it.