Finally Karma bites...
Two-term MPs lost guaranteed pension with prorogation
Published on:
08 Jan 2025, 9:16 am
A bill guaranteeing pension payments for dozens of MPs elected in 2019 lapsed with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision to prorogue Parliament, per Blacklock’s Reporter.
The next fixed election date under the Canada Elections Act is Monday, October 20. MPs first elected in 2019 would not meet the minimum six years’ seniority needed to qualify for a pension until Tuesday, October 21.
“We can show Canadians that we hear them and that we are going to be moving forward,” New Democrat MP Lisa Marie Barron earlier told the House Affairs Committee. Barron acknowledged widespread opposition to the provision of Bill C-65 An Act To Amend The Canada Elections Act.
“It’s not that I don’t think MP pensions are an important discussion,” said Barron.
“It’s that I feel if we’re going to talk about MP pensions we need to make it clear we’re talking about MP pensions and not see it added into a bill in a behind-the-scenes way.”
“Canadians need transparency. Canadians deserve to know what it is we are debating.”
“When this was brought to my attention that there was a clause in this bill that would inadvertently provide Members of Parliament with pensions they would not have received otherwise, I did exactly what any parliamentarian should do which is stand in the House of Commons and propose a solution.”
Witnesses told the House Affairs Committee that NDP political aides and at least one member of the party caucus, then-MP Daniel Blaikie, attended secret meetings with cabinet officials to discuss Bill C-65 weeks before it was introduced last March 20.
“We attended a meeting where the substance of that proposal was discussed,” Allen Sutherland, assistant cabinet secretary, testified October 31.
“Did you or anyone else in your office participate in meetings between Liberals and the NDP?” asked Conservative MP Luc Berthold.
“I attended I believe two meetings of that kind,” replied Sutherland.
“Didn’t you find it unusual that a discussion about amending the Elections Act included only two political parties and excluded the others?” asked Berthold.
“It’s important to understand what my role was in those meetings which was simply to provide background information,” replied Sutherland.
Conservative MPs were filibustering the bill in committee even before the prime minister’s Monday prorogation of Parliament that voided all bills on the Commons calendar.
“This was a cynical, dishonest attempt by the Liberals and the NDP to pad their pockets with pensions,” Conservative MP Michael Cooper told the committee December 3.
“They sold it as an election bill. Canadians are outraged by this. Canadians deserve answers.”
Twenty-eight Liberal and New Democrat MPs who would have been guaranteed pensions if the bill had passed included three cabinet members: Transport Minister Anita Anand, Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault and Tourism Minister Soraya Martinez Ferrada.
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Two-term MPs lost guaranteed pension with prorogation
Published on:
08 Jan 2025, 9:16 am
A bill guaranteeing pension payments for dozens of MPs elected in 2019 lapsed with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision to prorogue Parliament, per Blacklock’s Reporter.
The next fixed election date under the Canada Elections Act is Monday, October 20. MPs first elected in 2019 would not meet the minimum six years’ seniority needed to qualify for a pension until Tuesday, October 21.
“We can show Canadians that we hear them and that we are going to be moving forward,” New Democrat MP Lisa Marie Barron earlier told the House Affairs Committee. Barron acknowledged widespread opposition to the provision of Bill C-65 An Act To Amend The Canada Elections Act.
“It’s not that I don’t think MP pensions are an important discussion,” said Barron.
“It’s that I feel if we’re going to talk about MP pensions we need to make it clear we’re talking about MP pensions and not see it added into a bill in a behind-the-scenes way.”
“Canadians need transparency. Canadians deserve to know what it is we are debating.”
“When this was brought to my attention that there was a clause in this bill that would inadvertently provide Members of Parliament with pensions they would not have received otherwise, I did exactly what any parliamentarian should do which is stand in the House of Commons and propose a solution.”
Witnesses told the House Affairs Committee that NDP political aides and at least one member of the party caucus, then-MP Daniel Blaikie, attended secret meetings with cabinet officials to discuss Bill C-65 weeks before it was introduced last March 20.
“We attended a meeting where the substance of that proposal was discussed,” Allen Sutherland, assistant cabinet secretary, testified October 31.
“Did you or anyone else in your office participate in meetings between Liberals and the NDP?” asked Conservative MP Luc Berthold.
“I attended I believe two meetings of that kind,” replied Sutherland.
“Didn’t you find it unusual that a discussion about amending the Elections Act included only two political parties and excluded the others?” asked Berthold.
“It’s important to understand what my role was in those meetings which was simply to provide background information,” replied Sutherland.
Conservative MPs were filibustering the bill in committee even before the prime minister’s Monday prorogation of Parliament that voided all bills on the Commons calendar.
“This was a cynical, dishonest attempt by the Liberals and the NDP to pad their pockets with pensions,” Conservative MP Michael Cooper told the committee December 3.
“They sold it as an election bill. Canadians are outraged by this. Canadians deserve answers.”
Twenty-eight Liberal and New Democrat MPs who would have been guaranteed pensions if the bill had passed included three cabinet members: Transport Minister Anita Anand, Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault and Tourism Minister Soraya Martinez Ferrada.
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can't think of anyone off top of my head
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