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Opposition MPs complained that the Liberals were ‘changing the rules of parliament’ without proper debate or the chance to propose amendments
Published June 15, 2023 • read for 3 minutes
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau can be seen on a video conference screen in the House of Commons on October 6, 2020. Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, the government has made temporary arrangements to allow MPs to carry out their work virtually. Photo by Justin Tang/The Canadian Press/File
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OTTAWA – The House of Commons voted on Thursday night to make their hybrid seats permanent, despite outcry from the opposition who said debate on them was rushed.
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With the support of the NDP, the liberals succeeded in passing a time-sharing motion to limit the discussion about how MPs should conduct their sessions in the House of Representatives from now on. The move came after the proposal was submitted late last week and was only the subject of a few hours of debate.
Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, the government has had to make temporary arrangements to allow MPs to carry out their work virtually. The current hybrid measures were due to expire at the end of June, so the Liberals decided MPs could continue to participate in debates and committee meetings virtually and vote electronically indefinitely.
Liberal and NDP MPs have praised the hybrid format, saying it helps them find work-life balance or work even when sick. But the Conservatives strongly opposed making those changes permanent, arguing instead that the government should have added an expiration clause to keep the hybrid format in place for the rest of this House.
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Speaking on Thursday, Government House leader Mark Holland said he didn’t need more time to hear Conservatives once again express their grievances over the hybrid format.
“They can keep giving that same speech over and over, but it is not a limitation of democracy to hear that speech 10, 20, 30, 40 times. At a certain point, if they say the same thing, the message is heard: they are against it,’ he said during the debate in the House of Representatives.
“Well, I’m sorry… The House is moving forward with this because it’s the right thing to do.”
But MPs from all other parties also expressed frustration that they were not consulted further before finalizing these changes at the 11th hour, before leaving for the summer.
“I have no words,” said Bloc Quebecois MP Gabriel Ste-Marie. We are changing Parliament’s rules without going by consensus or near consensus. We are bulldozing the way of doing things. It goes against the spirit of parliamentarism. It is an embarrassment for democracy.”
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Green Party MP Mike Morrice said he understood why the government would limit debate because of the “never-ending partisan procedural games” in recent weeks, but said even he hadn’t decided to launch a hybrid in a few weeks. format in the House. to dawn.
“We are in the middle of a debate about the nature of how our parliament functions. It’s not legislation, so there’s not even a chance to propose an amendment; it is already a take it or leave it approach. And on top of that, we are being limited in our debate,” he said.
Even NDP MP Matthew Green, who supported the Liberals’ move to move forward with the hybrid format, gently mocked the government for trying to manage its legislative priorities in the final stretch before the summer, saying it should have made its changes sooner. implement.
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Holland said hybrid sessions had been studied by a parliamentary committee for months. The Liberal and NDP members recommended keeping the hybrid terms, with a review a year after the next election. The committee also recommended that cabinet ministers appear in person as often as possible during question time and before committees.
That report was published in January. Holland suggested that the government took the time to engage with the NDP, but only received a response a few weeks ago.
On Thursday, members of the Board of Internal Economy – the governing body of the House of Commons – also met to discuss the plight of interpreters, who have suffered numerous hearing injuries due to audio problems with the rise of the hybrid parliament.
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MPs have learned that no less than 70 committee meetings were canceled last year due to a lack of interpreters – and that 57 hours of committee time have been lost since the April holiday.
Dominic Laporte, chief executive officer of Public Services and Procurement Canada’s Translation Bureau, said current interpreter resources allow for a total of 160 hours of English or French translation. He acknowledged that there are some tough choices to be made when committee meetings are extended due to filibusters or other unexpected events.
However, it seems that most MPs are now using their headsets correctly after years of practice, and recent interpreter injuries have been related to face-to-face meetings.
– With additional reporting from Ryan Tumilty
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