MPs are expected to vote on a government bill seeking billions of dollars in funding as time runs out.
Last month, the Liberals asked Parliament to approve spending of $21.6 billion.
The money will be used to fund the First Nations child and family services program and to pay the Quebec government for services to asylum seekers, among other programs.
But there was uncertainty over whether the vote would take place before Tuesday’s deadline.
Parliament has been paralyzed for months as Conservatives pressure the Liberals to hand over documents relating to hundreds of millions of dollars in wasteful spending in a green technology fund.
The issue is at the center of an ongoing debate over privilege, which conservatives have vowed to pursue until they get what they want.
Questions of privilege take precedence over almost all other business of the House, so government business has not progressed.
But in a ruling last week, citing House of Commons rules and procedures, Speaker Greg Fergus said he would exercise his authority to suspend privilege debate, so that the vote on government spending could take place. .
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Supplemental appropriations bills must be passed by December 10, otherwise the government would not have the authority to spend additional funds.
The debate is expected to take place late this evening and the spending may not be voted on until Wednesday morning. Under new procedural rules adopted in February, the government can suspend a sitting day at midnight, suspending work until 9 a.m. the next day if debate on a supply bill has not been completed.
“Oh my God, I don’t want to predetermine anything. I don’t want to tempt fate or the universe,” Government House Leader Karina Gould told reporters Monday about how she thinks the vote could go.
“I can’t wait to vote. There are a lot of good things in there for Canadians, and it’s important that we get there. This is what Parliament is there for.
The bill requests, among other things, $561 million from the Department of National Defense for its Canadian multi-mission aircraft project.
“This funding is needed now for quarterly payment as part of the delivery plan we have with the US government for the acquisition of up to 16 P-8A Poseidon aircraft,” a department spokesperson said in a press release.
The purchase of the P-8A Poseidons is intended to replace Canada’s current maritime patrol aircraft, the CP-140 Aurora, which has been in service for over 40 years.
“We expect the first delivery of the aircraft in 2026,” a department spokesperson said.
The First Nations Child and Family Services program is requesting $955.2 million, which Indigenous Services Canada says is intended “to ensure continued compliance with orders of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal and to enable the continued provision of supports. The money intended for Quebec asylum seekers represents a $581.3 million request from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
The three ministries said none of the requests related to money already spent. If the funds are not approved, IRCC said it could seek to draw on government reserve funds to reimburse the province, while DND said it could have difficulty meeting its contractual obligations and keep projects on track.
However, the outcome of the vote is practically a foregone conclusion. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told reporters last week that his party would pass the Supplementary Estimates, since there is additional funding for the government’s new dental program – worth $317 million. of dollars.
© 2024 The Canadian Press