Ottawa, February 22: The House of Commons has passed a motion to approve extraordinary, time-limited measures in the Emergencies Act, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked last week in a bid to end blockades in Ottawa and at several border crossings.
The motion to confirm the declaration of emergency powers passed 185-151 on Monday evening with the New Democrats voting in favour alongside the minority Liberal government.
New Democrat Leader Jagmeet Singh said earlier Monday his party would support the motion but would withdraw that support as soon as it decides the measures are no longer necessary, including if remaining convoy members stopped lingering in Ottawa and near border crossings.
The Conservatives and the Bloc Quebecois opposed it, while the two Green MPs in the House were split.
The vote to approve the measures will keep them in place until mid-March at the latest. The Senate must also vote on the government’s request. At any point, the Senate, House of Commons or government could pull support and the extraordinary powers stemming from the emergencies law would be revoked.
Leading up to the vote, there were signs the government had decided to make it a confidence vote, meaning that if it failed, the minority Liberal government could have fallen, which would have triggered an election.
Trudeau had not officially designated the vote as such, but he opened the door to that interpretation by likening the decision to a vote on a throne speech, which lays out the government’s agenda.
“I can’t imagine that anyone who votes ‘no’ tonight is doing anything other than indicating that they don’t trust the government to make incredibly momentous and important decisions at a very difficult time,” he said at a news conference earlier in the day.
Just before the voting began around 8 p.m. EST Monday, government House leader Mark Holland was asked by the Conservatives to clarify whether this was a confidence vote.
“It’s time to vote,” he replied.
Singh said his party had always seen the vote as a confidence matter.
Toronto Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, who voted in favour, said in the debate he might have voted against continuing to use the act now that the blockades had ended. He said he would vote yes because he had no interest in helping trigger an election.
Joel Lightbound, a Liberal MP who has criticized the government over its handling of the crisis, said invoking the act was “a slippery slope.” He said he would be inclined to vote against the measures if it were not a vote of confidence, and asked for clarification from ministers. He also voted in favour of the motion Monday night.
Without any clear indication from Trudeau’s office or caucus whips, the Official Opposition criticized the prime minister for what B.C. MP Todd Doherty styled a “veiled threat” of an election because his leadership was “threatened” and “fragile.”
“We will absolutely retreat from the Emergencies Act as soon as we can,” Mendicino said.
Edmonton MP Ziad Aboultaif said using the act was overkill to stop what amounted to some illegally parked vehicles.
Liberal Peter Schiefke criticized “frequent, unabated displays of hatred” during the protests including swastikas. He said U.S. financial backing for the protests had some links to supporters of the Jan. 6, 2021 storming of the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Trudeau said a week ago he was invoking the act for the first time since it passed in 1988 because police needed extra help to end blockades that had been ongoing in downtown Ottawa for weeks.
