The sudden resignation of Chrystia Freeland from cabinet and ensuing calls for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign ensured that there was no quiet time in the House of Commons before Parliament rose for the holidays.
With all opposition parties saying they will vote non-confidence in the government, and open questions remaining about whether an early election may be called and who will lead the Liberals in the new year, 2025 could start off with a bang.
Here are five issues to look for with Parliament set to return on Jan. 29, 2025.
Tories to Push Non-Confidence Vote in Committee
The Conservative party introduced three non-confidence motions in the House of Commons toward the end of 2024, all of which failed to bring down the Liberal government. In the new year, the party will try a
different tactic to force an early election: introducing a confidence motion through a parliamentary committee.
Conservative MP and chair of the public accounts committee, John Williamson, said the committee will be recalled early, on Jan. 7, to discuss a motion of non-confidence. Committees are able to adopt reports that include recommendations for MPs in the House to take certain actions. So a successful motion passed in committee would allow the House to vote on it as an official motion of non-confidence.
Williamson says he’s also prepared for the
possibility of the five Liberals on the committee filibustering to delay a vote. He says he’s prepared to schedule additional meetings throughout the month of January until a motion is passed. Williamson said the motion is to be tabled in Parliament when the House returns from its holiday break on Jan. 29, and it could be voted on as early as Jan. 30.
With the leaders of the Conservatives, NDP, and Bloc Québécois now all saying they are in favour of voting non-confidence in the Liberal government, it’s looking likely that the committee will successfully pass this motion. With four Tories, one Bloc member, and one NDP MP on the committee, they have the numbers to pass the motion.
While
NDP MP Charlie Angus recently said he would break with his party and vote against a non-confidence motion, he is not a member of the public accounts committee.
Parliament Remains Backlogged
MPs’ work in the House of Commons was
stalled in late 2024 by a Conservative filibuster over the government’s failure to produce documents related to a federal green technology foundation, and 2025 is poised to resume right where it left off.
In June, the House of Commons passed a motion ordering the government to provide all documents related to
Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) to the RCMP for investigation. This came after a report by Auditor General Karen Hogan that found “
significant lapses” in the
now-suspended foundation’s governance, which included some 90 conflict-of-interest breaches and involved
allegations that nearly $150 million in taxpayer dollars were improperly handed to private companies..
The Liberals have released some documents but are withholding other files. They say they are concerned about a potential violation of privacy rights under the Charter and that the
request to release the documents to the RCMP could blur the lines between Parliament and the judiciary. The Tories, meanwhile, say the government is violating parliamentary privilege by failing to comply, and House Speaker Greg Fergus has said this argument has credence.
While the Liberals say the Conservatives should move the talks related to the SDTC to a committee, the Conservatives have promised work in the House will remain at a standstill until the government provides the green fund documents to the RCMP. With both sides refusing to budge, other work in the House of Commons is likely to remain gridlocked as Parliament resumes in 2025.
Several Bills Are in Jeopardy
Several pieces of legislation are
working their way through the House of Commons and would be dismantled if the government were to fall. The most high-profile of these is the controversial Online Harms Act,
Bill C-63, which targets issues like child pornography and would create a new hate crime offence punishable by life imprisonment.
Bill C-26, which deals with telecommunications security, had nearly become law when the Senate sent it back to the House with an amendment after completing third reading in early December. The bill aims to reinforce the security of Canada’s telecommunications network by providing government legal authority to prohibit providers, such as Chinese tech giant Huawei, from using high-risk products and services.
Another major bill that is now at risk is
Bill C-27, which deals with the protection of personal information and the regulation of artificial intelligence.
Bill C-65, a bill to make several amendments to the Canada Elections Act, such as an additional two days of advance polling and measures to combat foreign interference, is also at risk of dying before the next election.
Two bills related to Canada’s First Nations would also perish if Parliament is dissolved or prorogued:
Bill C-61, the First Nations Clean Water Act, and
Bill C-53, which deals with the recognition of certain Métis governments in Alberta, Ontario, and Saskatchewan.
May Be Prorogued Before Resuming
As 2024 draws to a close, a growing number of
Liberal MPs have begun openly calling for Trudeau to resign, including members of the Quebec, Atlantic, and Ontario Liberal caucuses. Trudeau has said he would be mulling over his political future over the holiday break, but he has not said whether he will stay on as leader.
While Trudeau could concede to his critics and resign, giving the party a chance to organize an accelerated leadership race, he could also decide to stay on and prorogue Parliament. Prorogation would end the parliamentary session and result in all legislation and committee work being suspended.
While proroguing would not help improve Trudeau’s popularity, it would give his government time to regroup and launch a fresh agenda. Trudeau used this option back in 2020 at the time of the
WE Charity controversy, and his predecessor Stephen Harper also did this in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2013.
In 2008, Harper successfully used prorogation to avoid a vote of confidence by the Liberals, the NDP, and the Bloc.
Trump’s Tariffs an Overarching Theme
Incoming U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of 25 percent tariffs on imports of products from Canada will certainly be a key focus of Parliament once it returns. Economists have said tariffs of that magnitude would devastate Canada’s economy, which is already experiencing weak per-capita GDP growth and a cost-of-living crisis.
