The House of Commons voted in favour of a Bloc Québécois motion on seniors benefits Wednesday over the objections of the Liberal government.
Federal cabinet ministers said the Bloc’s plan would set a terrible precedent if the government were to approve a private member’s bill that would authorize more than $16-billion in new spending.
Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet announced last week that unless a Bloc bill on seniors benefits and another bill related to supply management that is currently before the Senate are passed into law by Oct. 29, his party will be prepared to vote in favour of any non-confidence motion and trigger a federal election before the end of the year.
Bloc and NDP rebuff Conservatives’ attempt to bring down minority Liberal government
In a 181 to 143 vote, the House of Commons approved a motion from Mr. Blanchet that calls on the government “to take the necessary steps” to ensure that a royal recommendation is granted as soon as possible to Bill C-319, a Bloc bill that would boost benefits by 10 per cent for seniors aged 65 to 74.
Conservative, NDP and Green Party MPs supported the Bloc motion and the vast majority of Liberal MPs voted against it. Five Liberal MPs – René Arsenault, Serge Cormier, Mike Kelloway, Wayne Long and Ken McDonald – voted for the Bloc motion.
The motion was not a confidence vote, meaning a Liberal defeat did not trigger a federal election.
A private member’s bill, such as C-319, that involves spending tax dollars cannot be passed into law without a royal recommendation from the government.
Bloc leader Yves-Francois Blanchet presents an opposition day motion in the House of Commons, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024 in Ottawa.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
After the vote, Mr. Blanchet said the Liberals should respect the will of Parliament. He repeated his position that he is not open to any compromise and is willing to give the Liberals a limited amount of time to act on the Bloc’s demand.
“We said at the very beginning of this that this is our position. These are our demands. And it will not change. Either they implement both bills before Oct. 29 or we start discussing with other opposition [parties] in order to have this government fall,” he said. “I believe that many Canadians and most Quebeckers do not want an election soon but would understand that this is where we are now.”
Mr. Blanchet said the Liberal position is “not good news” and means that the “electoral alert is a bit higher.”
Karina Gould, the Liberal House Leader, said prior to the vote that the government would oppose the Bloc motion but added that she is always open to discussions with all parties in the minority Parliament.
“It is not appropriate for an opposition day motion to set the precedent to getting a royal recommendation this way,” she said.
Other ministers were more direct in their comments.
“We won’t be intimidated by the Bloc, never have, never will be,” said Immigration Minister Marc Miller. “They’re separatists. They have a political purpose that is other than mine.”
Health Minister Mark Holland expanded on the government’s reasoning.
Opinion: The Bloc Québécois threatens the finances of millennials and Gen Z
“I don’t think Canadians would want $16-billion private members’ bills just coming in with no contextualization. I think that would be a terrible precedent. I would think the Bloc would understand that as well,” he said.
The Trudeau government boosted benefits for seniors aged 75 and up in 2022. The government’s rationale for the age cutoff was that older seniors are at greater risk of outliving their savings and are less able to keep working if needed.
The Bloc said this created discrimination toward younger seniors.
Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux has said adding seniors aged 65 to 74 to that benefit would cost $16-billion over five years, or more than $3.5-billion a year once fully implemented.
Economists question Bloc demand to boost seniors benefits, which carries $16-billion cost
Some economists have questioned the policy merits of the Bloc bill, saying it is not targeted at seniors who are most in need. They also said spending on seniors would run contrary to the government’s stated goals of helping younger Canadians.
Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer did not provide a detailed explanation of his party’s position, but said seniors “have had it very tough” because of inflation.
“Conservatives are always on the side of seniors. We want to preserve the purchasing power of their pensions by putting an end to the inflation crisis that Justin Trudeau caused by axing the carbon tax so they don’t have to choose between heating and eating,” he said.
Opinion: Ottawa must not bow to the Bloc and boost Old Age Security for younger seniors
Ahead of the vote, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said his party has long supported an increase to pensions for seniors.
He said the NDP’s election platform stated that seniors should be able to live with dignity and respect, and a combination of the existing programs is simply not enough.
With a report from Stephanie Levitz