MPS SCRAMBLE TO PASS BILLS BEFORE SUMMER BREAK
MPS SCRAMBLE TO PASS BILLS SO THEY CAN GO HOME FOR THE SUMMER
It’s crunch time for Canada’s Parliament as lawmakers scramble to push through legislation before heading to their constituencies for a summer break.
Justin Trudeau’s Liberals have passed few bills relative to previous governments, and in the past year, a more volatile Senate has become five times as likely to amend legislation from the House of Commons.
Still, it’s been busy. Several bills passed last week and will be given royal assent on Monday, becoming laws. And there remains much to do if the government hopes to rise by Friday, the last sitting day currently scheduled before the House is to rise for the summer.
Here’s what’s passed so far, and what to watch for this week.
What’s passed in the scramble:
CITIZENSHIP CHANGES
Parliament has approved C-6, the Liberals’ update to citizenship laws. Dual citizens convicted of serious crimes such as terrorism will no longer have their Canadian citizenship revoked, which had been made law by the previous Conservative government.
The process for citizenship applications is also becoming easier. In a major shift, applicants must have resided in Canada for three out of five years, rather than four out of six years, before becoming citizens.
The Senate amended the bill to make application easier for children without a Canadian parent, and to add an appeals process for people facing the revocation of their citizenship because of fraud or misrepresentation. The Federal Court recently ruled the latter change to be required constitutionally.
TRANSGENDER RIGHTS
Parliament passed a law (C-16) that adds “gender identity or expression” to the Criminal Code and Human Rights Act, bringing the feds into line with most provincial human rights laws.
The phrase is being added to list of traits — such as sex, religion, language and ethnic origin — the law recognizes as prohibited grounds for discrimination, or as characteristics of groups protected from hate propaganda or bias that a judge deems “aggravated” a crime.
The bill sparked controversy when some commentators expressed fears their freedom of speech could hypothetically be limited if, for example, they refused to use a person’s preferred pronouns. However, lawyers disputed such claims in testimony to parliament.
NEW OLD UNION RULES
Parliament passed C-4, a bill that repeals two private member’s bills passed under the Conservatives, restoring rules around certification and decertification of unions. Advocates say it removes unreasonable reporting rules and will make it easier for workers in federally regulated environments to unionize.
The Senate tried to amend the law to retain a requirement that unions be formed by secret ballot vote, but the government rejected the amendment, favouring the “card check” system, which requires a simple majority of workers to join by signature. The upper chamber acquiesced.
What to watch for this week:
THE FEDERAL BUDGET
A standoff between the Senate and House of Commons looms over the Liberals’ second budget.
A contingent of senators, including Conservatives and Senate Liberals, want to make a separate piece of legislation out of the section of the budget bill that would create a federal infrastructure bank. The Senate speaker ruled against the idea, but senators overturned the speaker’s ruling and this week will debate a motion to split the budget.
Other amendments are being discussed, such as removing an escalator on the rate at which alcohol is taxed. But Finance Minister Bill Morneau has warned he will not entertain changes to the bill.
INDIAN STATUS REGISTRATION
Plaintiffs in a landmark court case will this week ask a Quebec Superior Court judge to grant another extension on a ruling that strikes down Indian Act registration rules.
A government bill responding to the court decision from summer 2015 seeks to eliminate sex-based discrimination in Indian status registrations. The Senate voted for an amended version of the bill that proponents say would eliminate discrimination even further.
But the government didn’t support the change and has carved the Senate amendment back out of the bill. This week — pending whether an extension is granted or not — senators will decide if they want to push the government further. The courtimposed deadline is currently July 3.
CHANGES TO THE NATIONAL ANTHEM
A year after the House of Commons passed a private member’s bill that would make the anthem genderneutral by changing the lyric “in all thy sons command” to “in all of us command,” senators are still arguing about it.
Several Conservative senators have brought amendments that propose other wording combinations, which have delayed a final vote. The bill’s supporters want it passed by Canada Day.
NATIONAL SECURITY OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE
A Senate committee continues to study a law that would create a National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians. It is one of few additional government bills that have a hope of being passed before the summer break — if senators act swiftly.