Budget bill passes Senate, receives royal assent

The Harper government’s budget has now become law after the Senate approved a second omnibus implementation bill on the last day of the 2012 parliamentary session.

By a vote of 50-27, the Senate passed the government’s second budget implementation bill Friday morning. The Governor General gave the bill, along with a host of others, royal assent during a short ceremony soon after the vote.

It was the last vote in a long few days in the Senate, which also passed a bill to combat elder abuse, a spending bill (C-50) and then unanimously approved Conservative MP Harold Albrecht’s private member’s bill to create a national suicide prevention framework.

But left out of the voting was another private member’s bill that would allow for single-event sports betting in Canada. The bill run into opposition from both Conservative and Liberal senators after major sports leagues came out against it, arguing that it could lead to players throwing games or shaving points.

Gaming industry officials say singlegame betting is already taking place in Canada, but is an unregulated, underground industry. Approving the bill would allow for better scrutiny of how money is being bet on sports and catch anomalies, they say.

The bill passed through the Commons with little debate, garnering support from all parties in the House.

The budget bill, Bill C-45, includes changes to public sector pension plans, a new electronic travel authorization system, pay raises for judges and changes to environmental protection and reviews for lakes and rivers.

The Harper government has argued that the changes were needed to protect the economy.

The opposition tried to prevent or stall adoption of the bill in recent weeks, with MPs proposing 1,600 amendments, all of which were defeated by the Conservatives in marathon voting sessions last week.