Break a Law, and Sucker the Volunteers. Oh, good job Steve.

...to say nothing of an additional $3.5 million local riding associations and Elections Canada lose. The party of fiscal dysponsibility strikes again, and pooh for democracy.

When a law is in place, Canadians just sorta, you know, believe it's really a law. Silly Canadians, you forgot about His Unitary Prime Ministership's Divine Right of Waking Up One Morning and Changing the Rules.

From the CP:
Election volunteers will be frustrated and poor if byelections canceled

"With this byelection, so much money has already been put into it, not only by the people here, but Elections Canada has already put so much into it," she says.

A federal byelection costs an average of $892,000 per riding, says Elections Canada.

"If a byelection is in full swing and even if we're two days before a polling date and it gets cancelled, we start off again, we close the book on the byelection and start off in general election mode," says John Enright, spokesman for Elections Canada.

This means the amount that could be recovered from the money already spent on the four byelections "would be minimal", notes Enright.

The total cost of running a byelection also includes reimbursing the candidates for 60 per cent of their expenses, provided they receive at least 10 per cent of the vote.

But if the byelections are cancelled, Elections Canada will pay all the candidate's expenses not covered by donations.

Just one question I want answered: were the Conservatives in those four ridings also tooling up for the byelections -- or just taking it easy? Inquiring minds want to know. It might tell us how long ago HRH Harper really decided to pull the pin.