MPs approve $21.6B in supplementary spending; Conservatives vote against

OTTAWA -

Parliament has approved $21.6 billion in government spending, in a late Tuesday vote in the House of Commons.

On the final day the money could be voted on, MPs rushed through the supplementary funding to the 2024 budget, including money for various programs such as First Nations child services, dental care and compensation to Quebec for services to asylum seekers.

The Conservative party opposed the additional spending in its entirety, while the Bloc Québécois only opposed one aspect of it — $1.1 million in spending for Canada's special representative on combating Islamophobia.

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NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told reporters last week his party would vote the supplementary estimates through, given the $317 million additional money for the government's new dental care program.

"I'm pleased the majority of members in the House of Commons recognize that the supports contained in the supplementary estimates are supports that Canadians need," Treasury Board President Anita Anand told The Canadian Press following the vote.

There had been uncertainty around whether the vote would even happen before Tuesday's deadline.

Parliament has been paralyzed for months as the Conservatives press the Liberals to hand over documents relating to hundreds of millions of dollars of misspending on a green-tech fund. The NDP and Bloc Québécois have been unwilling to free the Liberals from the stalemate, as they too want the government to release unredacted documents.

The issue is the focus of an ongoing privilege debate, which the Conservatives have pledged to keep going until they get what they want.

Privilege matters take precedence over nearly all other House affairs, so government business has been almost entirely stalled.

When the government first tabled the supplementary estimates, Anand warned some departments might be in financial trouble if the spending wasn't approved.

But in a ruling last week, citing House of Commons rules and procedures, Speaker Greg Fergus said he would exercise his authority to pause the privilege debate so the vote on government spending could proceed.

Asked if perhaps there was a misunderstanding on whether the spending would ultimately get passed, considering the ongoing privilege debate, Anand said it may not have been universally understood.

"We have a different process than the United States," Anand said, referencing U.S. government shutdowns when spending bills don't get approved.

"I recognize that, but I'm not sure that was universally understood."

Among other requests in the supplementary estimates is $561 million for the Department of National Defence for its Canadian multi-mission aircraft project.

"This funding is needed now for quarterly payment under the delivery plan we have with the United States government for the acquisition of up to 16 P-8A Poseidon aircraft," a Defence Department spokesperson said in a statement.

The P-8A Poseidons are to replace Canada's current maritime patrol aircraft, the CP-140 Aurora, which have been in service for more than 40 years.

"We are expecting first delivery of the aircraft in 2026," a department spokesperson said.

The First Nations child and family services program request is for $955.2 million, which Indigenous Services Canada says is "to ensure continued compliance with Canadian Human Rights Tribunal orders and allow the continued delivery of supports."

The money for the Quebec asylum seekers is a $581.3-million request through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

All three departments said none of those requests is for money which has already been spent. If the funds aren't approved, the Immigration Department said it might look to dip into government contingency funds to repay the province, while the Defence Department said it could encounter problems meeting contractual obligations as well as keeping the projects on track.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 10, 2024.