QUESTION PERIOD — Finance
Omnibus Bills
December 3, 2025
Senator Moreau, in your first meeting with those of us who are part of the Canadian Senators Group, or CSG, we all shared our core concern: that we be allowed to do our work and for that work to be respected. Omnibus bills of whatever size — such as the budget implementation act, or BIA, and Bill C-4 — undermine our ability to meet our constitutional obligations. I realize that the attempt to hide clause 4 in Bill C-4 was obviously made because people are embarrassed, and they should be. This bill would exempt political parties from privacy considerations.
Would you please consider separating clause 4 from Bill C-4 so that we can provide the scrutiny necessary to let the economic measures go ahead but allow that clause to be studied?
I’ll be very honest with you: I’m not aware that it is the intention of the government to change Bill C-4 as it is now in the other place. Bill C-4 is still at the other place. We’ll have the privilege to study Bill C-4 as soon as it comes here — hopefully before Christmas, but it’s not for me to say if it will be here by then. I think you should ask questions of Senator Housakos, who would probably be able to answer regarding whether Bill C-4 will be here as soon as next week.
My understanding is that there is no intention to withdraw clause 4 from Bill C-4.
We don’t want to hold up economic measures, and I think all political parties support this, but the problem is that people go to the door and collect data. It’s not just questions — those questions are deemed consent — but they look around; they see what car you drive, what dog you have, how many kids are there, et cetera.
The consumer, the voter, the citizen — they can’t challenge this because they don’t know what’s been collected. Can we please study this separately?
I know it’s a concern that not only you but also some of your colleagues are sharing with me. For instance, I made sure it was possible for one of your colleagues to speak with the government leader in the other place concerning that matter. But my understanding is that there is no intention to change the way the bill is written at this time.
