If you can’t enact your agenda without trampling on some ancient Parliamentary prerogatives, possibly you need to rethink your agenda
Parliament has returned, with much on its plate. There are fewer than 40 sitting days before the House is scheduled to rise for the summer, never to return, and nearly as many government bills still mired in the legislative process.
Omnibus bills, as they are called, have become an increasing source of concern as their use — and size — has grown in recent years. The Harper government’s fondness for them so scandalized the opposition Liberals that they promised, in their 2015 election platform “to bring an end to this undemocratic practice,” in that bold, unequivocal style readers will be familiar with.
The notion that a bill that contains literally dozens of other bills is not an omnibus bill so long as it merely implements a budget of even greater length may be taken as a sign of the degraded state of politics in this country. In the first place, what is required to make a bill “related” to the budget is thin indeed.
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