Conservatives not backing Emergencies Act, MPs to debate motion Thursday
Interim Conservative Leader Candice Bergen says the party won’t be supporting a motion tabled by the federal government that would give them the powers to enforce the Emergencies Act.
Leaving a Conservative caucus meeting, Bergen said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau didn’t attempt to thoroughly rectify the protesting and blockades in Ottawa and elsewhere with the existing powers he had.
“The first act that he does when he has a chance to do something – he doesn’t go through step one, two, three – he goes straight to 100 and invokes the Emergencies Act,” she said.
“I don’t think anything that we will see will change our mind, we will be opposing it.”
Bergen noted that the invoking of the Act comes at the same time many of the blockades are being lifted through local law enforcement.
“It really begs the question, why he would take this drastic action?”
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino tabled the motion in the House of Commons late Wednesday evening, as well as the proclamation declaring a public order emergency.
In a subsequent tweet, Government House Leader Mark Holland said he expects a “fulsome” debate and after discussions with other parties is prepared to consider “constructive ideas” on how to adjust the schedule of the House so that many MPs can participate.
“I look forward to this historic debate. It is essential that this matter be dealt with urgently, and that a vote be held before the end of the upcoming constituency week for MPs,” he said.
As part of the parliamentary oversight requirements in invoking powers under the Emergencies Act, the government must table a motion in both the House and Senate within seven sitting days outlining why federal officials feel the powers are required and detailing what specific measures will be taken, to allow the two parliamentary bodies to confirm it.
Now that the motion is tabled, debate will begin Thursday and will continue, according to the Act, “without interruption” until the vote is ready to be called -- essentially when the list of speakers has been exhausted or if the government imposes closure on the debate.
The emergency powers will remain in effect if the motion is adopted, which is expected given the NDP have signalled they’ll support the Liberals.
“We’re reluctant in making this decision to support, we’ll listen very carefully to the debate before we place our votes but we have indicated that we are supportive of taking a serious step to respond to this crisis,” said NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh on Wednesday.
However, getting it passed through the Upper Chamber remains to be seen. The Senate has been recalled to consider the matter on Friday morning.
Late Tuesday night the government issued the regulations outlining in more detail what powers are being enacted though the act.
Among them are safeguarding vaccine clinics, banning children from protests and blockade sites, protecting war memorials, and directing essential services.
Justice Minister David Lametti said these regulations will be tabled in the House of Commons by the end of Thursday.
“Looking ahead, both the House of Commons and Senate will soon have the opportunity to debate and vote on the emergency declaration…Parliament can amend or revoke any orders we have made. This is an important democratic check and balance in the act,” he said speaking to reporters on Wednesday.
Lametti sought to comfort Canadians who are concerned that the move would infringe on personal rights and freedoms.
“It is allowing us to use targeted and proportional measures to help bring the illegal blockades and occupations to an end. And critically, all of our actions under the Emergencies Act will comply with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. That requirement is built into the legislation itself,” he said.
Despite the assurance of the act’s scope, Conservative MPs are calling the move a “power grab.”
“There is no national emergency, there is no threat to the security of Canada, the protests at the border were peacefully taken down and I think it’s an overreach,” said Conservative MP Marilyn Gladu.
“[The prime minister] did not act with his existing powers. So for him to grab even further powers, and very far-reaching powers, is very troubling.”
With files from CTV News’ Rachel Aiello.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canadian gov't proposes new foreign influence registry as part of wide-spanning new bill
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is proposing a suite of new measures and law changes aimed at countering foreign interference in Canada, amid extensive scrutiny over past meddling attempts and an ever-evolving threat landscape.
Boeing Starliner capsule's first crewed test flight postponed
The long-awaited first crewed test flight of Boeing's new Starliner space capsule was called off for at least 24 hours over a technical issue that launch teams were unable to resolve in time for the planned Monday night lift-off.
Teacher charged in historical sexual assault of Calgary teenage girl
Calgary police have charged a teacher with the alleged sexual assault of a teenage girl more than 20 years ago.
Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, argues he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
Man banned from owning animals after fatal Calgary dog attack
The owner of three Calgary dogs that got loose and mauled a woman to death in 2022 has been ordered to pay a $15,000 fine within one year and banned from owning any animal for 15 years.
East-end Ottawa family dealing with massive rat infestation
Residents in Ottawa’s Elmridge Gardens complex are dealing with a rat infestation that just won’t go away. Now, after doing everything they can to try to fix the issue, they are pleading with the city to step in and help.
Mediterranean staple may lower your risk of death from dementia, study finds
A daily spoonful of olive oil could lower your risk of dying from dementia, according to a new study by Harvard scientists.
An El Nino-less summer is coming. Here's what that could mean for Canada
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Newfoundland and Labrador latest province to tighten rules on Airbnbs
Newfoundland and Labrador is the latest jurisdiction to bring in stricter rules for short-term rentals, with a coming set of regulations that will force operators to register with the provincial government.
Local Spotlight
'Love has no boundaries': Sask. couple in their 90s and 80s get married
Eighty-two-year-old Susan Neufeldt and 90-year-old Ulrich Richter are no spring chickens, but their love blossomed over the weekend with their wedding at Pine View Manor just outside of Rosthern.
Twin Alberta Ballet dancers retire after 15 years with company
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
Video shows gaggle of geese stopping traffic on Highway 1 near Vancouver
A mother goose and her goslings caused a bit of a traffic jam on a busy stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway near Vancouver Saturday.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
Here's how one of Sask.'s largest power plants was knocked out for 73 days, and what it took to fix it
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
Quebec police officer anonymously donates kidney, changes schoolteacher's life
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Canada's oldest hat store still going strong after 90 years
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Road closed in Oak Bay, B.C., so elephant seal can cross
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.