The Bloc Québécois motion on increasing the Old Age Security pension for seniors aged 65 to 74 was finally adopted, without the support of a majority of Liberals, during the vote in Ottawa on Wednesday after -noon.
Conservative and New Democrat MPs supported the Bloc motion which asked that the government commit to taking steps to grant the royal recommendation to their Bill C-319. The motion passed with 181 votes in favor and 143 votes against.
Unlike the rest of their caucus, five Liberal elected officials decided to support the Bloc motion. Former Liberal minister turned independent MP, Pablo Rodriguez, also voted for the motion.
Despite the rejection of his motion by almost all Liberals, Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet maintains the October 29 ultimatum issued to the government last week. However, he added a new timetable during a press briefing on Wednesday.
Mr. Blanchet specified that the government now has “until the break week” to give the royal recommendation to its bill so that the October 29 deadline is respected. The parliamentary break is scheduled for the week of October 14.
“It’s still totally possible. [Les libéraux] didn’t say they didn’t want to do it. They said they were not doing it for procedural reasons,” Mr. Blanchet said in the foyer of the House of Commons, after the end of the vote.
The Leader of the Government in the House, Karina Gould, indicated on Wednesday morning that the Bloc Québécois motion was not the appropriate vehicle to win the case.
Mr. Blanchet reiterated that he will begin discussions with the opposition parties on a possible overthrow of the government when “it becomes impossible” to have his two bills adopted within the requested deadlines.
“We’re not there yet, even if it’s not a good sign. The electoral alert level is rising a little,” he warned.
The Liberals now have 27 days to pass the Bloc’s two bills if they want to maintain its support.
“Extremely expensive”
According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, increasing the amount of pensions for seniors under the age of 75 would cost $16 billion over the next five years.
“We’ll see what the Bloc does, but we felt that what they were proposing was extremely costly and socially regressive. I mean a retired couple making $150,000 to $160,000 a year would receive more than a single retired woman making $30,000 a year. This makes no sense,” said Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault before the vote was held on Wednesday.
The minister and new Quebec lieutenant for the Liberals, Jean-Yves Duclos, also doubts the benefits of the Bloc proposal. “This is a bill that would give more money to a couple who earns $150,000 in retirement income than to a single senior who has $25,000 in retirement income. I think Mr. Blanchet’s intention to help seniors is good, but is this the right way to get there? “, he said Wednesday morning.
The Bloc leader refutes any idea that C-319 is too costly a measure. He believes that Ottawa could stop paying subsidies to oil companies and redirect these sums into measures such as increasing the Old Age Security pension.
Since the start of Parliament, the Trudeau government has survived two votes of confidence put forward by the Conservatives thanks to the support of the NDP and the Bloc.
The stability of the government has been uncertain since the breakdown of the agreement between the Liberals and the New Democrats, which guaranteed the survival of the minority government until 2025.
With The Canadian Press
