Debates of the Senate (Hansard)
1st Session, 43rd Parliament
Volume 151, Issue 17
Friday, March 13, 2020
The Honourable George J. Furey, Speaker
- ROUTINE PROCEEDINGS
- ORDERS OF THE DAY
THE SENATE
Friday, March 13, 2020
(Pursuant to rule 3-6(1) the Senate was recalled to sit this date, rather than March 24, 2020, as previously ordered.)
The Senate met at 11 a.m., the Speaker in the chair.
Prayers.
Business of the Senate
Motion to Extend Today’s Sitting Adopted
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(a), I move:
That, notwithstanding rule 3-4, the sitting continue beyond the ordinary time of adjournment today; and
That rule 3-3(1) be suspended today.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to.)
[Translation]
Motion to Authorize Senators to Speak or Vote from a Seat Other Than Their Assigned Places During Today’s Sitting Adopted
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(a), I move:
That, notwithstanding rules 6-1 and 9-8(1)(b), senators may speak or vote from a seat other than their assigned places during today’s sitting.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to.)
ROUTINE PROCEEDINGS
Canada—United States—Mexico Agreement Implementation Bill
First Reading
The Hon. the Speaker informed the Senate that a message had been received from the House of Commons with Bill C-4, An Act to implement the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States.
(Bill read first time.)
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the second time?
Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-6(1)(f), I move that the bill be placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(On motion of Senator Gold, bill placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.)
Appropriation Bill No. 4, 2019-20
First Reading
The Hon. the Speaker informed the Senate that a message had been received from the House of Commons with Bill C-10, An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020.
(Bill read first time.)
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the second time?
Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-6(1)(f), I move that the bill be placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(On motion of Senator Gold, bill placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.)
Appropriation Bill No. 1, 2020-21
First Reading
The Hon. the Speaker informed the Senate that a message had been received from the House of Commons with Bill C-11, An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2021.
(Bill read first time.)
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the second time?
Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-6(1)(f), I move that the bill be placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(On motion of Senator Gold, bill placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.)
Financial Administration Act
Bill to Amend—First Reading
The Hon. the Speaker informed the Senate that a message had been received from the House of Commons with Bill C-12, An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act (special warrant).
(Bill read first time.)
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the second time?
Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-6(1)(f), I move that the bill be placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(On motion of Senator Gold, bill placed on the Orders of the Day for second reading later this day.)
(1110)
[English]
Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration
Committee Authorized to Meet during Adjournment of the Senate
Hon. Jim Munson: Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(a), I move:
That the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration have the power to meet, even though the Senate may then be adjourned, and that rule 12-18(2) be suspended in relation thereto.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to.)
ORDERS OF THE DAY
Canada—United States—Mexico Agreement Implementation Bill
Second Reading—Debate
Hon. Peter M. Boehm moved second reading of Bill C-4, An Act to implement the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States.
He said: Honourable senators, it is my great pleasure to rise today to speak as the sponsor of Bill C-4, An Act to implement the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States.
Like all of you, colleagues, I did not expect this to happen today, but we do, of course, find ourselves in a global public health crisis. In fact, I had a 45-minute speech ready to go, but this one will be 5 or 6 minutes.
The COVID-19 pandemic demands that we take extraordinary measures to keep ourselves and all members of the Senate family safe. This is why we have been recalled this morning to deal with urgent government business.
Otherwise known in Canada as CUSMA, l’ACEUM en français, the new NAFTA, USMCA in the United States and T-MEC in Mexico, this tri-national agreement is essentially a modernized version of the original treaty of 1994. It is NAFTA for the 21st century.
Regardless of which side of the political fence you sit — or squarely on top of it, as I sometimes do — this agreement is a win for Canada and for our national economy, our industry, our agriculture and agri-food sector and our workers. All Canadians win. Once implemented, it will not only protect Canadian jobs but will help to prepare us for the jobs of the future. It will also ensure long-term stability, predictability and, most importantly, growth in the North American market.
[Translation]
We should not just be happy with the end result of more than a year of difficult negotiations — with at least one especially challenging opponent. We should also be happy with the team that brought us to this point. Canada’s negotiating team — and it was indeed a team — led by then Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chrystia Freeland, and our Chief Trade Negotiator, Steve Verheul, was comprised of some of Canada’s, and the world’s, best and brightest public servants. I am honoured to have worked with many of them in my previous career. All Canadians should feel very proud of the people who represent us and advocate for our interests internationally.
[English]
As I said, this is a much-shortened version of my planned second reading speech. I just want to put that on the record. My original plan was to go back to 1854 and the original reciprocity agreement, taking us through to the 1911 reciprocity election and the like. I am sparing you that, and I can sense your disappointment.
I had also wished to offer some remarks about the bilateral relationship between Canada and Mexico, as that important bond is often overshadowed by the one we share with the United States.
Canada’s relationship with Mexico has blossomed from us seeing Mexico as a lovely winter tourism destination to a key trading partner since the original NAFTA was enacted in 1994. It was our first formal deal with Mexico, and since then, our relationship has flourished and will continue to do so.
This agreement — signed in Mexico City on December 10, 2019 — bolsters the original deal of 1994 by modernizing key chapters, some of which certainly warranted review. Renegotiating NAFTA was definitely not something Canada or Mexico wanted, although there was a general recognition that some changes should be made. After all, in the interval, we had entered the digital age, our global supply chains had multiplied significantly and our environment had become more threatened. We were pushed into negotiations about a trade deal that has served Canada and North America very well, by any measure, for more than 25 years. The choice with which we were presented seemed to be a better NAFTA or no NAFTA at all. The question was on whose terms.
We chose the latter and came away with an agreement that maintains all the most important elements of NAFTA for our country while improving on a number of them.
[Translation]
More than a year of challenging negotiations, and uncertainty for businesses and workers across the continent, finally led to a good deal, signed in November 2018. Then came more than a year of delay on ratification because Congressional Democrats wanted amendments on labour standards and environmental policies. The changes make the updated agreement signed last December that much stronger, but the extended delay led to further uncertainty and worry. Many were especially, and justly, concerned given political events in the United States.
[English]
All of these challenges — all ably handled by our team — made finally getting to this point that much more satisfying, though I imagine our negotiators would have felt plenty satisfied had this been wrapped up without these great challenges. Our negotiating team did a superb job in difficult circumstances. Its members certainly deserve our thanks and respect, not just for getting Canadians a strong deal, but for their dedicated service to our country.
The government’s NAFTA Council also deserves credit for its work. It included a diverse selection of prominent Canadians of all backgrounds and political stripes, including, among others, Rona Ambrose, the former interim leader of the Conservative Party; Perry Bellegarde, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations; James Moore, a former Conservative MP and minister; and Hassan Yussuff, President of the Canadian Labour Congress since 2014.
The hard work of our entire team led to a deal that has been strongly endorsed by important groups, including the Council of the Federation, comprised of Canada’s 13 provincial and territorial premiers, a crucial base of support; the Canadian Chamber of Commerce; and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. All have urged quick ratification to not only end years of uncertainty for the Canadian business community, industry and workers, but also so that Canadians may finally benefit from a modern, progressive trade agreement.
As a final point, I wish to thank the members and dedicated staff of our very temporary — much more temporary than I had thought — Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, as well as the witnesses who appeared over our three meetings this past week.
Honourable senators, I submit that this is a good deal for Canada and for all Canadians — indeed for all North Americans — that will ensure stable, reliable and predictable trading partnerships with our continental neighbours for years to come.
The new NAFTA is an agreement for which you can proudly vote in favour, and I urge you all to do so, colleagues.
(1120)
Hon. Larry W. Smith: Honourable senators, I would like to bring forward three ideas and points that we should be aware of as we work through the new agreement with the United States and Mexico once it is ratified.
The first point is that Canada is the fourth-largest aluminum producer in the world, providing just over half of all aluminum consumed in the United States. Eight of the nine Canadian smelters are in Quebec. I am speaking as a Quebec representative.
CUSMA excludes a definition for aluminum rules of origin for automobiles. This means that producers in Mexico will still have access to cheaper and poorer-quality aluminum from Asian markets such as China. Of the steel used in the production of automobiles in North America, 70% must be melted and poured in North America, but those rules don’t apply to aluminum, meaning that Chinese aluminum can be recycled in Mexico and used in the production process. This removes any competitive advantage that Canadian aluminum producers would have over Asian aluminum.
This is a big blow for Quebec, but it’s something that has to be managed as we move forward. There are always good things and bad things in any negotiation. This negotiation, at the end of the day, is positive for our country, but there are elements that we should be conscious of and that we have to manage because it’s important that we keep our competitive advantage.
The second area is dairy. While Canada maintained control over the supply-managed dairy sector, it did offer concessions in the form of access to the Canadian dairy market at 3.6%. With the other deals that we’ve been involved with — CPTPP in Asia and CETA in Europe — how much market share are we giving up? Is it 3.6%? Is it 5%? Is it 7%? Is it 10%?
There are two classifications in the industry. Milk classes 6 and 7 have very high prices and benefits to the economy. Classes 6 and 7 are domestic pricing classes that govern milk ingredients, such as skim milk powder and milk proteins. These concessions expand the American dairy industry’s access to the Canadian market and allow it to reduce the domestic surpluses that it has built up over the years.
Steve Verheul, Canada’s chief negotiator, said they do have surpluses in the dairy sector. They consistently have a surplus problem. They have gone so far as to store skim milk powder — get this — in caves in Pennsylvania because they don’t know what to do with it. This was one of the more difficult aspects of the negotiations on those issues.
American dairy producers use a hormone called recombinant bovine somatotropin, which is injected into cows to boost milk production. It is banned for use in Canada, so any product coming into our country would have hormones in it that we do not allow. Again, this is something to monitor and ensure that we manage as we go forward. This is not a criticism. When you are dealing with a big player — and these guys have the biggest economy in the world — we have to be agile and move as best we can to secure a deal. However, we have to manage things going forward. So that is dairy.
Third is the economic impact assessment of the deal. The government modelled its assessment of the new trade agreement against the prospect of no free trade agreement. They made their assessment and it seemed to be one-sided and favourable. The government claims that CUSMA preserves GDP gains of $6.8 billion, or 0.249%, as well as almost 38,000 jobs, or 0.160% of jobs would have been lost if the United States withdrew from NAFTA. Overall, after CUSMA is implemented, Global Affairs is projecting Canadian exports into the U.S. to be valued at $16.9 billion, and imports from the United States are projected to be valued at $20.4 billion. There is a discrepancy that we will have to manage.
The C.D. Howe Institute modelled CUSMA against the current NAFTA agreement, and they concluded that Canada’s GDP is projected to shrink by 0.4%, and the country is set to lose $10 billion in economic welfare.
Again, these are the challenges and potential headwinds that we will have to manage as a smaller partner. Our agility and ability to influence people, once the deal is done, will be very important in terms of how we manage the new deal. This is good for our country, but, let’s be honest, there are challenges within that to make it even better as we go forward. The agility of our negotiators and the people who will continue to talk with the United States after the implementation will be paramount to the long-term success.
These are just three points. There are a few more, but we don’t have a lot of time and we need to move forward.
Declaration of Private Interest
Hon. Scott Tannas (Interim Leader of the Canadian Senators Group): Honourable senators, I did this once before when we moved the pre-study of Bill C-4 and I need to do it again.
I, Scott Tannas, note for the record that I believe I have a private interest that might be affected by the matter currently before the Senate. The general nature of the interest is that I am a shareholder and officer of a dairy processing company, Foothills Creamery, a maker of high-quality butter and delicious ice cream available in your grocer’s freezer, that may be impacted by this agreement.
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, Senator Tannas has made a declaration of private interest regarding Bill C-4, and in accordance with rule 15-7(1), the declaration shall be recorded in the Journals of the Senate.
Second Reading
On the Order:
Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Boehm, seconded by the Honourable Senator Gold, P.C., for the second reading of Bill C-4, An Act to implement the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States.
Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, I was going to speak at third reading, but I can speak now. I don’t think we will have a long time between second and third reading. Senator Smith has already made some comments, and I might repeat some of them.
Colleagues, let me begin by acknowledging that we find ourselves in very unusual times, which can be very unsettling. There is no higher priority for this chamber and for all of Parliament than the health and safety of all Canadians. The extraordinary circumstances we find ourselves in have made the preventive measures we are taking today necessary for the sake of the greater public good.
I wish to extend my best wishes to the Prime Minister, his wife and his whole family as they deal with the impact of COVID-19 in a very personal way. I’m sure all of our thoughts and prayers are with their family as they take the time and measures necessary to ensure their family’s health.
I know there are other parliamentarians who have self-isolated as well, such as Jagmeet Singh. I commend them for their decisions. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and all Canadians who are being faced with challenges and uncertainty during this time. Colleagues, we will do all that is necessary under these circumstances.
However, it must be noted that this urgency could have been avoided with respect to Bill C-4. It is the government that is in control of the legislative agenda. It is regrettable that they have not managed this bill better in order to allow Parliament the necessary time to properly review it.
We all acknowledge how foundational our trading relationship with the United States is for Canada’s economy. About 75% of all of Canada’s global trade is conducted with just one country, the United States of America. Hundreds of thousands of Canadian jobs are dependent on trade with the United States. If we add Canada’s trade with Mexico to the equation, we are looking at an even greater economic footprint since Mexico also ranks among Canada’s five most important trading partners.
There is absolutely no question that an agreement that secures Canada’s access to the American market is vital to our economy. In that context, there is no question that the Conservatives will support this agreement.
Nevertheless, there are certain aspects of this particular agreement that should give us all pause for concern, and they are issues that we as parliamentarians have to monitor in the years ahead.
First, the government is lauding the agreement as a great victory in which Canada has greatly improved its position in North American trade.
(1130)
It is not clear to me that this is supported by the evidence that we have heard. The government has said that the agreement “secures GDP gains of $6.8 billion or 0.249%, which would be lost if the U.S. withdrew from NAFTA.”
In other words, the government has measured the gains under this agreement against there being no NAFTA at all. It assumes that the alternative to this deal was no agreement of any kind. This assumes that the U.S. Congress and northern American states would just have accepted no deal between Canada and the United States.
This is a scenario that would have done immense damage to the American economy. It is difficult to imagine that the United States itself would have preferred this outcome, yet this is the scenario against which the government is measuring the trade agreement which it has negotiated.
This approach to analyzing gains or losses under the agreement is not one which the C.D. Howe Institute has accepted. The analysis undertaken by the C.D. Howe Institute measures the agreement we have before us against the current NAFTA. Under that analysis, the C.D. Howe Institute has concluded that:
Canada’s real GDP stands to shrink by -0.4 percent and economic welfare to fall by over US$10 billion.
This is certainly a less rosy analysis than what the government is providing.
We are also aware that certain Canadian sectors will be facing challenges, perhaps significant challenges, under this agreement. The government has granted increased access to our dairy market to American producers; American producers who are heavily subsidized by the American federal government. The government made absolutely no gains in tackling the issue of American subsidies to their agricultural sector. Yet, significantly increased access has been granted to the Canadian market.
Our farmers have yet to see the details of the support package which the government has promised to farmers, and that is extremely disappointing. Farmers require certainty, like any other business.
The government has known about the details of the agricultural provisions in this agreement that we now have for well over a year, and yet farmers still do not have the certainty that they need. That should make us all very concerned.
In another area, it is very clear that our aluminum industry did not receive the same benefits under this agreement that our steel producers did. While North American-sourced steel must be melted and poured in North America in order to qualify as regionally sourced steel, the same provisions were not adopted for aluminum. Our negotiators told us that Mexico simply would not support such a provision, but I think what is more telling is that the Americans did not support our position in this matter.
Why did we fail to secure American support? This is where I am very concerned about our government’s approach to these negotiations. There were several occasions when the Deputy Prime Minister made deliberate public statements against the current American President.
On one occasion during the middle of negotiations, she even attended a conference entitled “Taking on the Tyrant,” where the American president was compared to several world dictators. I know everyone has their own opinion of the current American administration, but for our lead minister to do this, in the middle of the most highly sensitive negotiations that Canada could be engaged in, was highly irresponsible. Doing that risked undermining Canadian interests. One cannot help but wonder if the strength of Canada’s negotiating position suffered as a result.
In my view, we should probably be relieved that we have an agreement, but I am not confident that we achieved the best result that we could have achieved.
We also know that several of our key sectors will face new challenges as a result of this agreement. These are challenges, which I submit, parliamentarians must monitor in the years ahead. It will be Parliament’s job to ensure that the government is not only positioning Canada to take full advantage of this agreement, but also to ensure that it is standing up and supporting sectors that will have been made more vulnerable under this agreement. Certainly, Conservative senators will be doing that.
I trust that all senators in this chamber will undertake to do that as well. Thank you.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to and bill read second time.)
[Translation]
Third Reading
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the third time?
Hon. Peter M. Boehm: Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(b), I move that the bill be read the third time now.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to and bill read third time and passed.)
[English]
Appropriation Bill No. 4, 2019-20
Second Reading
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate) moved second reading of Bill C-10, An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020.
She said: Honourable senators, I move that this bill be read a second time.
The Hon. the Speaker: Are honourable senators ready for the question?
An Hon. Senator: Question.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
An Hon. Senator: On division.
(Motion agreed to and bill read second time, on division.)
[Translation]
Third Reading
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the third time?
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(b), I move that the bill be read the third time now.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
An Hon. Senator: On division.
(Motion agreed to and bill read third time and passed, on division.)
Appropriation Bill No. 1, 2020-21
Second Reading
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate) moved second reading of Bill C-11, An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2021.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
An Hon. Senator: On division.
(Motion agreed to and bill read second time, on division.)
(1140)
[English]
Third Reading
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the third time?
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(b), I move that the bill be read the third time now.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
An Hon. Senator: On division.
(Motion agreed to and bill read third time and passed, on division.)
Financial Administration Act
Bill to Amend—Second Reading
Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate) moved second reading of Bill C-12, An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act (special warrant).
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
An Hon. Senator: On division.
(Motion agreed to and bill read second time, on division.)
Bill to Amend—Third Reading
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this bill be read the third time?
Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(b), I move that the bill be read the third time now.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
An Hon. Senator: On division.
(Motion agreed to and bill read third time and passed, on division.)
Business of the Senate
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(j), I move:
That the sitting be suspended to await the announcement of Royal Assent, to reassemble at the call of the chair with a 15-minute bell.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to.)
(The sitting of the Senate was suspended.)
(The sitting of the Senate was resumed.)
(1300)
[Translation]
Royal Assent
The Hon. the Speaker informed the Senate that the following communication had been received:
RIDEAU HALL
March 13, 2020
Mr. Speaker:
I have the honour to inform you that the Right Honourable Julie Payette, Governor General of Canada, signified royal assent by written declaration to the bills listed in the Schedule to this letter on the 13th day of March, 2020, at 12:14 p.m.
Yours sincerely,
Assunta Di Lorenzo
Secretary to the Governor General and Herald Chancellor
The Honourable
The Speaker of the Senate
Ottawa
Bills Assented to Friday, March 13, 2020:
An Act to implement the Agreement between Canada, the United States of America and the United Mexican States (Bill C-4, Chapter 1, 2020)
An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020 (Bill C-10, Chapter 2, 2020)
An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2021 (Bill C-11, Chapter 3, 2020)
An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act (special warrant) (Bill C-12, Chapter 4, 2020)
[English]
The Senate
Motion Regarding Depositing Special Warrants During Adjournment of the Senate Adopted
Hon. Yuen Pau Woo: Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(j), I move:
That any special warrant issued under the provisions the Financial Administration Act may be deposited with the Clerk of the Senate during any period that the Senate is adjourned; and
That any special warrant issued under the provisions of the Financial Administration Act and deposited with the Clerk of the Senate be referred to the Standing Committee on National Finance, when and if the committee is formed, if it is not then properly constituted.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to.)
Adjournment
Motion Adopted
Hon. Raymonde Gagné (Legislative Deputy to the Government Representative in the Senate): Honourable senators, with leave of the Senate and notwithstanding rule 5-5(g), I move:
That, when the Senate next adjourns after the adoption of this motion, it do stand adjourned until Tuesday, April 21, 2020, at 2 p.m.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is leave granted, honourable senators?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(Motion agreed to.)
[Translation]
Business of the Senate
The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, before we adjourn, I want to thank everyone who worked so hard over the past few days to make sure the Senate could keep operating in spite of this very difficult situation.
[English]
I know that I speak for all senators when I send an extremely heartfelt thank you to everyone for their collaboration and commitment to the health and safety of senators, Senate staff and visitors under exceptional circumstances.
To you, to all my colleagues, be safe, be healthy, take care of yourself and your families.
(At 1:06 p.m., the Senate was continued until Tuesday, April 21, 2020, at 2 p.m.)