For the past three weeks, the return of Parliament has been overshadowed by the “Freedom Convoy”, border blockades, the invocation and revocation of the Emergencies Act, and now the conflict in Ukraine. Lost in the headlines has been a new tactic used by the Liberal government to move their legislation forward.
In practice, most government bills are introduced in the House. However, with the House pre-occupied with some of the government’s priority legislation, such as the new broadcast bill, the government appears to be turning to the Senate to ensure that the other pieces of the government’s legislative agenda remain on-track. Earlier this month, the government’s representative in the Senate, Senator Marc Gold, introduced S-4, which would enhance technological tools for criminal proceedings and S-5, an environmental bill which amends the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. Both of these were government bills before the House during the last parliament (S-4 was C-23 and S-5 was formerly known as C-28).
It also appears that these are not two isolated instances. Another bill rumoured to hit the clerk’s table in the Senate is the government’s revived digital and privacy legislation. With the House of Commons bogged down in other business, Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne could be looking to the Senate to kickstart this legislation in the coming weeks.
Some may call this parallel process ‘efficient’ to expedite legislation, while others see it as the government circumventing the traditional democratic processes. And there may be legitimacy to the latter point. Members of the House of Commons are elected to scrutinize and evaluate government legislation. Introducing it in the Senate first removes this initial scrutiny by elected parliamentarians. Not to mention, not all parties have representation in the Senate and Senators are not accountable to voters. While that review by MPs will still take place, the government will no doubt make the case for fast-tracking through its second round.
Using the Senate as a vehicle to drive the government’s agenda also means that businesses and associations will need to adapt. It can no longer be assumed that the government will only be tabling legislation in the House and observers will need to monitor the Senate just as closely. In addition, engagement with the Upper Chamber will need to be conducted in a more proactive manner, not unlike outreach with MPs upon the tabling of legislation.
While it is certainly within the rules to flip the legislative process and introduce bills in the Senate first, it can be a slippery slope. These are not inconsequential bills. These pieces of legislation will have a significant impact on the day-to-day lives of Canadians and businesses and expediency shouldn’t be a substitute for due process. After all, the Senate was created to offer sober, second thought, not sober, forethought.
