QUESTION PERIOD — Finance
Prompt Payment of Federal Government Construction Work
June 20, 2022
Honourable senators, my question is for the Government Representative in the Senate. Senator Gold, tomorrow marks three years since Bill C-97, Budget Implementation Act, 2019, No. 1, received Royal Assent in this chamber. Section 387 of that act, the Federal Prompt Payment for Construction Work Act, is still not in force.
Do you have any indication of when this act will come into force, and do you have any information as to what’s holding up the proclamation of this act?
Thank you for your question, senator. The government believes that contractors and subcontractors in the construction industry deserve to be paid promptly. Regarding the specifics of your question, I will have to make inquiries with the government and report back to the chamber.
Senator Gold, how do we know if the government will proclaim any of the measures under order-in-council proclamation of Bill C-19 that we are currently studying at the National Finance Committee? Are any of these measures under question?
Thank you for your question. I can’t answer the specifics of your question. I would imagine and hope that questions of this nature would have been posed to officials when they appeared at the various committees looking at Bill C-19, and more than that, I will certainly make inquiries, Senator Duncan, in the event that the bill receives third reading vote this week as planned.
