Â鶹´«Ã½

Skip to main content

House rises for the summer, gov't vows to return 'ruthlessly' focused on improving Canadians' lives

The Peace Tower is pictured through security fencing on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday, June 19, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick The Peace Tower is pictured through security fencing on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday, June 19, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Share

The House of Commons has adjourned a few days early for its summer break, after members of Parliament agreed to pause their legislative business until mid-September.

On Wednesday, all MPs approved a motion to expedite a few small measures and wrap after completing a few votes, including seeing the key Budget Implementation Act Bill C-69 clear the Commons.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday afternoon about the "important accomplishments" achieved during the spring sitting, Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon said that the minority Liberal government has passed 15 bills in 14 weeks

Asked what the Liberals plan to focus on come the fall, MacKinnon said the government "will be pretty ruthlessly focused on making lives better for Canadians in their daily life."

"That was our focus in every day of this session. Dental care, child care, housing… We are going to continue very much with that philosophy," MacKinnon said.

This week, the Conservatives tried to push for House of Commons committees to sit over the summer, but Liberal, NDP and Bloc Quebecois MPs rebuked those efforts.

"Conservatives proposed a reasonable work plan... But the lazy Liberal-NDP coalition preferred to go on vacation," said the party in a statement.

Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer made one last unsuccessful attempt to see the House agree to this push, before thanking – later echoed by other party representatives – all of the House support staff, the parliamentary pages, protective services, interpreters and others who help keep the Commons running.

"I hope everyone in this House has a wonderful summer with their family and loved ones in their ridings, listening to their constituents," New Democrat Party Whip Heather McPherson said.

All party approval was required to adjourn the House ahead of Friday's scheduled end of the spring sitting. The House will resume sitting on Monday, Sept. 16.

The Senate will continue to sit, potentially into next week, giving it time to oversee the royal assent of a final few bills before it also wraps up its work.

In addition to passing the budget, the fall economic update implementation legislation, and a pair of related spending bills, the Senate is expected to finalize the parliamentary process on Bill C-70, the Countering Foreign Interference Act, before calling it a season.

Among the bills that are being left to languish, until MPs return, are Bill C-63, the Online Harms Act, which has been years delayed; Bill C-64, the Pharmacare Act, which is before the Senate but isn't set to clear all stages until the fall; and Bill C-65, the Electoral Participation Act, which is poised for amendment at committee.

IN DEPTH

Opinion

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

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

Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

How to win the fight with kids over phone use

The end of the day — when school, extracurricular activities and homework are (hopefully) finally done — is the window that many kids have for downtime. It can be a struggle to convince them not to go on their phones.

Local Spotlight

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.

Stay Connected