Major projects bill expected to pass before MPs leave for the summer

OTTAWA — If you blink, you might miss it. Prime Minister Mark Carney’s controversial major projects bill was set to finish its dash through the House of Commons today — the final day of the sitting before summer — with support from the Conservatives and not-so-quiet grumblings from the other opposition parties. “Usually, on the last day of sitting before the summer, everyone is smiling, we’re in a good mood, we pat ourselves on the backs. But today, I would say that’s not really the case,” said Bloc Québécois MP Xavier Barsalou-Duval during a speech on Friday. The final vote on Bill C-5 in the House is set to happen shortly after 5 p.m. before making its way to the Senate for a final adoption expected within a week, on Friday, June 27. The legislation has two parts. The first, which has more support across party lines, aims to eliminate internal trade and labour mobility barriers in Canada. The second part, which would give cabinet sweeping powers to approve natural resource and infrastructure projects deemed in the national interest, has raised considerably more concerns. Indigenous communities, environmental groups, opposition parties and even some Liberal MPs have said they are uncomfortable with the lack of consultation with First Nations, Inuit and Metis people prior to tabling the bill, but also the extent of the powers that would give the government of the day the power to ignore other federal laws for five years. “Pretending that this unprecedented power grab was ever discussed in the election is a sham, and we can add an ‘e’ to that. It’s a shame,” said Green Party leader Elizabeth May. C-5 was rushed through committee earlier this week. Despite that, opposition parties managed to pass amendments which include exempting a number of laws — such as the Indian Act and the Conflict of Interest Act — from being ignored when considering major projects and publishing a list of national interest projects with timelines and costs. “These amendments matter,” said Shannon Stubbs, energy and natural resource critic for the Conservatives when describing the changes in the House. “They bring transparency, accountability, more certainty, more clarity and integrity to a bill that originally had none.” Stubbs said despite those changes, “major concerns” remain. She cited the need to prevent ministers from removing projects from the national interest list at any time but also add in the bill clear timelines to approve projects to increase certainty for investors. On Friday, opposition parties claimed a small victory. NDP MP Jenny Kwan, with the help of the Bloc’s Marilène Gill, argued the Speaker of the House should divide C-5 into two distinct parts so that MPs could vote on the portions on internal trade and major projects separately at third reading. Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia granted their request. “While they are ultimately designed to strengthen the Canadian economy, they deal with different issues that could very well stand independently from one another,” he explained. The passage of C-5 concludes in a dramatic way a packed four-week spring sitting that saw Carney’s government table significant omnibus bills, very fast, but adopt very few. The government tabled C-2, the Strong Borders Act , which seeks to secure the Canada-U.S. border, fight organized crime and fentanyl and boost the fight against financial crimes. It is facing criticism for sweeping new powers that would allow officials to obtain information without a warrant and for restricting the asylum claim process, among others. It also tabled C-4, the Making Life More Affordable for Canadians Act, which includes some of the government’s campaign promises on affordability like a middle-class tax cut and removal of the GST on new homes for first-time homebuyers. However, the bill has been criticized as it also seeks to exempt federal political parties from modern privacy laws. Unlike the major projects bill, C-2 and C-4 were not fast-tracked, meaning that they will continue to make their way through the legislative process during the fall sitting. Interestingly, the first legislation to pass all stages in this new Parliament was not a government bill. Last week, MPs unanimously approved C-202, a Bloc bill to protect the supply management system which regulates the price and production of dairy, poultry and eggs, from future trade deals. That same bill was stalled in the Senate in the last legislature and ended up dying on the order paper when the election was called. This time, the Senate approved C-202 on division, and it is now awaiting royal assent. National Post calevesque@postmedia.com

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