Senate.

AuthorMoss-Norburry, Vanessa
PositionLegislative Reports

The spring/summer quarters were extremely busy for Canada's Senate, including changes in composition and operations that have been underway since the start of the 42nd Parliament. The Upper House continues to adapt to the changing leadership structures, and activities identified in the previous legislative report, such as the attendance of ministers at Question Period, have continued.

Legislation

The most debated piece of legislation in this period was Bill C-14, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and to make consequential amendments to other Acts (medical assistance in dying). The Senate began its consideration of the legislation by initiating a pre-study before the bill left the House of Commons. In May, the Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs met over five days and heard from 43 witnesses, including ministers and departmental officials, doctors, lawyers, members of the academic community and other interested stakeholders. The committee reported back to the Senate on its pre-study on May 17 and made 10 recommendations as well as eight more supported by a minority in the committee. Many of the recommendations were similar to those contained in the report of the Special Joint Committee on Physician-Assisted Death. On May 31, C-14 received first reading in the Senate. The same day, a motion was passed for the Senate to resolve itself into Committee of the Whole the following sitting day to hear from the Ministers of Justice and Health on the subject matter of the bill. Each minister appeared separately for two hours, with the proceedings being televised. After lengthy debate at second reading, the bill itself was sent to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee for study. The committee chose not to amend the legislation; rather it opted to allow the Chamber as a whole to consider amendments proposed at third reading stage, permitting more Senators to be part of those proceedings. A motion was adopted to establish the detailed parameters for proceedings at third reading. In particular, the normal restriction on speaking only once was lifted, senators were able to move more than one amendment and debate was generally organized by specific themes.

Third reading debate began on June 8 and extended over six days. During this time, the Senate adopted numerous amendments, one of which was proposed by Senator Serge Joyal and significantly changed the eligibility criteria so that assisted death would be available to all...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT