Tories Protest After Aide Confirms Liberals and NDP Held Closed-Door Meetings on Bill to Modify Elections Act

Conservative member of Parliament Luc Berthold rises during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Oct. 24, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

A cabinet aide has confirmed the Liberal and NDP parties held closed-door meetings to amend the Elections Act, a move that Conservatives argue aims to ensure parliamentary pensions for dozens of MPs.

Assistant cabinet secretary Allen Sutherland testified at the House Affairs committee that, prior to the introduction of Bill C-65 (An Act To Amend The Canada Elections Act), meetings were held by MPs and their staff to review the drafts.

“We attended a meeting where the substance of that proposal was discussed. My understanding is the briefing was primarily oral,” he said.

When Conservative MP Luc Berthold asked Sutherland about the dates of the meetings and who was involved, Sutherland said he could not remember. “I attended, I believe, two meetings of that kind,” he said, as first covered by Blacklock’s Reporter.

“Didn’t you find it unusual that a discussion about amending the Elections Act included only two political parties and excluded the others?” Berthold asked.

“It’s important to understand what my role was in those meetings which was simply to provide background information,” Sutherland replied.

Conservatives have raised concerns that proposed amendments to the act would change the date of the next federal election from Oct. 20, 2025, to Oct. 27, 2025. While Section 1 of the act stipulates that a general election must be held on the third Monday of October, the Liberals have said many communities will be celebrating the holiday of Diwali at that time.

The Members of Parliament pension plan stipulates that MPs 55 years of age and older qualify after six years of service. The original election date would have meant MPs elected on Oct. 21, 2019, would fail to qualify.

The latest Nanos poll says the Conservatives have the support of 39 percent of Canadians compared to the Liberals at 26 percent and NDP at 20 percent, putting the Tories in majority territory.

Debate Over Election Date

Conservative MP Eric Duncan questioned why the election date was pushed back from Oct. 20 to Oct. 27. “You have a lot of cultural and religious observances that take place in the fall,” Sutherland said, referencing the Sikh and Hindu holiday of Diwali.

Duncan responded that the proposed election date was moved back for “purely political purposes” to help secure the pensions of the Liberal and NDP MPs, saying the Tories and Bloc MPs were not invited to the meetings.

“We’re going to find out who was at those meetings and when they took place,” he said.

Bloc Québécois MP Marilene Gill said there was no reason to change the date of the election, as those who celebrate Diwali could vote in advance polls. “This measure is useless. People can still exercise their right to vote. This will do nothing,” she said.

Liberal MP Mark Gerretsen said the Conservatives and Bloc were presenting a “partisan narrative.“ He said there was nothing ”scandalous” about changing the election date.

“If you are against the legislation and you don’t believe in it, fine, vote against it,” he said. “I know Conservatives like to try to make absolutely every single issue around here to be some scandal, but that’s just not the reality.”

Liberal MP Sherry Romanado pointed out that several Conservative MPs elected in 2019 would also benefit from Bill C-65.