(Ottawa) The Bloc Québécois wants to see two of its bills – on improving the Old Age Security pension and on protecting supply management – adopted by October 29. After that date, it is threatening to bring down Justin Trudeau’s minority government, as Quebec Premier François Legault had hoped.
“The fundamental reason for this approach is to literally take advantage of the circumstances to make gains for Quebec,” said Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet at a press briefing on Wednesday. He acknowledged in the same breath that these policies could also “serve people who are not in Quebec.”
This position comes less than a week after Quebec Premier François Legault called on the Parti Québécois to “be courageous” and put pressure on the Bloc Québécois to bring down Justin Trudeau’s minority Liberal government. He was growing impatient with the temporary immigration issue. The Bloc Québécois chose not to include this issue in its demands, preferring two others that already have the support of all parties in the House.
“Provoking an election or preventing an election is not our motivation. We must get the irreversible implementation – no nice coffee, no promises – the irreversible implementation […] of C-319 and C-282,” he said.
Bill C-319, the Old Age Security (OAS) pension, requires a royal recommendation to proceed further through the House of Commons, as it would involve government spending. It seeks to provide the 10% increase to the OAS pension starting at age 65 and to increase the exemption from $5,000 to $6,500 for an individual’s employment income in calculating the amount of the Guaranteed Income Supplement.
The increase in the OAS would represent an additional $80 per month, or about $1,000 per year per person, but the bill would be steep for the government. It would reach $3 billion per year in 2024-25 and would gradually increase to $3.5 billion in 2027-2028, according to the parliamentary budget officer. The Bloc leader suggested that this money could be found by eliminating subsidies to the oil industry.
The Bloc Québécois is also adamant about Bill C-282 to protect supply management in future trade negotiations. It was adopted by the House of Commons in June 2023, but has been gathering dust in the Senate for months. The Senate committee study began Wednesday.
“If these two bills are not established as irreversible laws, on October 29, 2024, the Bloc Québécois will undertake negotiations based on the fact that the government has refused to be useful at least to Quebecers on fundamental issues and will therefore undertake discussions with the other oppositions with a view to overthrowing the government,” he explained.
He believes that this is a sufficiently realistic timetable to adopt these two bills by speeding up parliamentary work.
PHOTO ADRIAN WYLD, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Justin Trudeau
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau avoided committing himself during question period despite the Bloc leader’s six interventions.
We have already demonstrated many times that our priorities include helping seniors and protecting supply management. We have demonstrated it, we continue to demonstrate it, and we are very open to continuing to work with other members in this House to deliver for seniors, to deliver for our farmers.
Justin Tudeau, Prime Minister of Canada
He recalled that the Bloc Québécois had voted against the creation of the dental care program that benefits thousands of Quebec seniors. “Dental care should be the responsibility of Quebec, the federal pension is the responsibility of Ottawa,” retorted Mr. Blanchet.
Few Conservatives reacted to the October 29 deadline imposed by the Bloc Québécois. “We can’t wait,” exclaimed MP Bernard Généreux, a few hours before the vote on the first motion of censure submitted by his party.
“The Bloc Québécois is voting to keep in power the most centralizing and costly government in the history of the country,” its leader Pierre Poilievre stressed again in his first intervention during question period.
PHOTO ADRIAN WYLD, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre
The new Bloc strategy coupled with that of the Conservatives increases the pressure on the New Democratic Party (NDP), which will have to decide how long it can continue to support the government now that its agreement with the Liberals is over.
“Our game plan remains exactly the same,” said the deputy leader of the New Democrats, Alexandre Boulerice. “If Mr. Blanchet wants to paint himself in a corner, wants to set his own timetable or red lines that he can then get bogged down in, that’s not my problem.”
The NDP will continue to “judge piece by piece, vote by vote what is good for people, what helps people in the current situation or not,” he added.
For a motion of censure to bring down the government, it would need the support of all three opposition parties.
With Joël-Denis Bellavance, Fanny Lévesque and Charles Lecavalier, The Press