bill 36 101 - whens the soonest it could be implemented
- Thread starter mahmoud
- Start date
The last summer of love! Goodbye to all that. A Farewell to Ass. Whatever Happened to the Pussy of Tomorrow.
Some obnoxious bills the Reform/Conservatives tables in the past were "allowed" to die on the table (I am thinking about their first internet-copyright-download bill here). With luck they may make Bill C-36 one of those bills that dies a whimpering death.
They say it could take up to 6 years, but one wonders how the court will approach this if the govt has blatantly defied it's ruling in a very punitive manner. There is really nothing to prove here. The court ruling had some very clear findings, and the govt has said basically FUCK YOU SCOC
Yes, and in addition to this path through the House of Commons, the Bill must then repeat all of the same steps as it goes through the Senate chamber. Of course, the Senate is also currently a Conservative majority.
It's hard to say how much time the Senate would spend studying and debating the Bill. In theory, the purpose of the Senate is to study complex bills in greater depth and detail to identify any issues that the House may have overlooked, or to vote down any irrational bills passed too hastily by the House. Also, because Senators are appointed and not elected by the public, they can afford to take a broader view of a subject and try to do what's best for Canada as a whole in the long-term. MP's in the House, on the other hand, are more inclined to focus on the short-term and how their vote on a bill may affect their own re-election or their standing in the party. I know people like to bash the Senate, but that's the theory anyway of why we have 2 chambers and why the Senate is unelected. Whether it works that way in practice is debatable. Maybe we'll see with Bill C-36. It's hard to say at this point if the Senate will take a lot of time studying it or will pass it quickly to appease Harper and MacKay and meet the deadline.
One thing for sure is that MacKay will be driving hard to get this Bill passed by early December, since the existing laws expire on Dec. 19, 2014, and the last thing the Conservatives want to occur is full legalization. That only gives them about 11 or 12 weeks in the fall, once Parliament resumes, to drive this bill home. It looks like the Justice Committee will be holding a few rare sessions this summer to get a jumpstart on the process, because the gov't knows the timeline is tight. In addition to that, the police services across Canada would need to figure out and instruct their officers on the new strategy of enforcement. I'm unsure if the Supreme Court would grant an extension if the government is close to having a new law in place by the deadline but is still debating some of the finer details.
Agreed. So is there a way to perhaps expedite the process? In other words, is there a way to compel the AG to refer the issue to the SCC if the Conservatives will not? Is there another way for the SCC to become involved quickly as it has in the recent past with Harper?
Peter MacKay is the Attorney General of Canada, as well as Justice Minister.
http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/abt-apd/mag-mpg.html
Highly unlikely it will be passed into law by the fall. Once Parliament closes for the summer, nothing happens to the bill. Once Parliament reopens in October, that's when the next stages in the House of Commons will start: second reading, committee, third reading. After that, it will have to go through the same stages in the Senate; i.e. first, second and third readings, and committee.
It can take more than a year for a bill to become law. If at any time before it becomes law Parliament is dissolved for an election, the bill would die and would have to start back at square one in the new Parliament after the election.
The Conservatives are required to call an election by Oct. 2015. Realistically, they would likely call an election earlier in the spring of 2015; governments never like to call an election in the winter or summer months. So let's hope the opposition can slow down the passage of the bill long enough until the next election is called.
B88
When are federal elections held in Canada?
Since May 2007, the Canada Elections Act provides that a general election be held on a fixed date: the third Monday of October in the fourth calendar year following the previous general election. As the last election took place on May 2, 2011, the next fixed election date is October 19, 2015. The Chief Electoral Officer may recommend an alternate day for a fixed-date general election if the date set for polling is not suitable for that purpose.
That said, the Canada Elections Act does not prevent a general election from being called at another date.
General elections are called when, on the advice of the Prime Minister, the Governor General dissolves Parliament. The Governor in Council (the Governor General, acting on the advice of Cabinet) sets the date of the election. The Canada Elections Act (section 57) specifies that the election period must last a minimum of 36 days; it does not specify a maximum.
Just for clarification ... although the same steps are repeated in the Senate, the Senate does not have to wait until after the House is done with the Bill to begin its own process.
http://www.parl.gc.ca/About/House/compendium/web-content/c_g_legislativeprocess-e.htm
Since most government bills originate in the House of Commons, the Government sometimes requests that the Senate consider a bill as quickly as possible. The Rules of the Senate of Canada provide for a procedure known as pre-study whereby the subject matter of a bill that has been introduced in the House of Commons, but has not yet been sent to the Senate, is sent to a Senate standing committee. In this way, the Senate can consider the bill and form its opinion even before it receives the bill from the House of Commons. When the bill is received, the Senate is then in a position to adopt or amend it within a very short time.
I have no idea if Senate "pre-study" has been requested by the government for C-36.
This is like being back in high school Canadian government and law class all over again. A good refresher from all of these excellent posts!
One can hope, and not entirely out of the realm of possibility. All the more reason to apply pressure now while we can.
So did we all believe, when Harper got his Fixed Elections Act passed shortly after he was first elected. Didn't take him any time at all to find the loophole in his own law when he wanted to call a snap election though.
Truth is: In Canada elections happen when the Governor-General issues the Writ. He'll do so by the date in the Fixed Elections Act, or earlier if the PM asks him to, either because he can't get his Bills passed having lost the confidence of the House, or just because he thinks he can win more seats in a new one if it happens now.
Which is how it's always worked here.
Fixed Elections Act notwithstanding.
