Which impactful bills have still not been passed now that parliament is in summer vacation?

The Liberal government managed to pass some of its most notable pieces of legislation before Parliament rose for its more than two-month summer recess this week, but several key bills will still be pending when the House of Commons meets again in September.

Both of the government’s draft online regulation bills – the Online Streaming Act and the Online News Act – were passed in the final weeks of parliament, ending more than a year of debate on the issue.

The government also succeeded in passing its Budget Implementation Bill despite fierce opposition from Conservatives, who thwarted passage of the bill for weeks while calling on Liberals to put forward a plan to eliminate deficit spending.

However, several bills will be in legislative limbo this summer, most notably Bill C-21, the Liberals’ controversial gun control bill.

Account C-21

Bill C-21 was passed in the House of Commons in May and since then passed second reading in the Senate, and will be considered by the Senate Standing Committee on National Security when Parliament reconvenes.

The pending legislation will amend the Firearms Act and introduce a new definition of what the government considers prohibited “assault-style” firearms. The new definition shall cover all non-small arms which “fire centerfire ammunition in a semi-automatic manner; was originally designed with a detachable cartridge magazine with a capacity of six rounds or more; and which is designed and manufactured on or after the day the legislation in takes effect.”

The bill will also bring back a firearms commission to classify guns sold in the marketplace.

In addition, the legislation will enshrine a small arms transfer freeze that the cabinet has put in place by order in council in 2022.

Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino called it the “most important gun control legislation in Canada in a generation”.

Bill C-48

Introduced late in the spring session of the House, Bill C-48 is the government’s attempt to reform the federal bail system, which has drawn heavy criticism from opposition parties and provincial premiers for months.

pending legislation, yet for second reading in the House, proposing a number of changes to Canada’s Penal Code, including a new clause that would “create a new reversed burden of proof for serious repeated violent crimes involving weapons” when the accused was convicted of a similar crime within the previous five years.

It also proposes extending the current reverse burden of proof for firearms convictions to other offenses such as unlawfully possessing a loaded or restricted weapon and stealing firearms.

If passed, courts would need to consider a suspect’s violent criminal history and community safety record when making bail decisions.

Conservatives have criticized the legislation, saying it will not solve the current problem of violent, repeat offenders being released on bail before serving their full prison sentence.

“They have not reversed the catch and release,” Conservative leader Pierre Poilièvre said on May 16, adding that Bill C-48 “does not guarantee that a violent repeat offender recently charged with a violent crime will remain in prison until the sentence has been pronounced. completed.”

The bill’s introduction in May came after all provincial premiers signed a joint letter in January calling on Ottawa to strengthen the federal bail system.

Bill C-50

Natural Resources Secretary Jonathan Wilkinson introduced Bill C-50, the Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act, less than a week before the House rose for the summer.

The bill is the Liberals’ so-called “just transition” bill that aims to create a federal plan for creating “sustainable” green energy jobs for workers in Canada’s oil and gas sector as Ottawa seeks a national net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Criticism and concerns about the legislation have come from both opposition conservatives and provincial premiers – with both Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe saying they will not implement the legislation if it passes into law.

“Alberta will not recognize, cooperate with or enforce any attempt to phase out our county’s oil and gas industry or workforce,” Smith said in a June 15 statement. rack. “This is non-negotiable.”

The counties are concerned that the legislation will affect millions of jobs, as suggested in a briefing note prepared for Wilkinson in 2022.

The federal government has maintained that the legislation will create jobs rather than destroy them.

“I don’t believe the challenge we’re going to face is that there are workers who are displaced and won’t find other high-paying jobs,” Wilkinson told CBC News in January.

“I’m actually quite concerned that there are so many opportunities…we won’t have enough employees to fill the jobs.”

Marnie Cathcart and The Canadian Press contributed to this report.