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Motion No. 154 (Resolve Committee of the Whole on C-45)

Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Harder, P.C., seconded by the Honourable Senator Bellemare: That, without affecting the progress of any proceedings relating to Bill C-45, An Act respecting cannabis and to amend the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the Criminal Code and other Acts, at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 6, 2018, the Senate resolve itself into a Committee of the Whole to consider the subject matter of the bill; That the committee receive: (…
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Bill C-63 (Budget) - Third Reading

Honourable senators, I rise today to speak to Bill C-63, A second Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures, or the “Budget Implementation Act,” as it appears in its short title. I would like to speak particularly to Part 4, not surprisingly perhaps, which refers to the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act. Presently, the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act does not provide the necessary authorities…
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Bill C-45 (Cannabis) - Second Reading

Honourable senators, it is my pleasure to rise in this chamber as a sponsor of Bill C-45, An Act respecting cannabis and to amend the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the Criminal Code and other Acts, also known as the cannabis act. This bill is both significant and historic in the context of health promotion in Canada. In that sense, to ensure there were no surprises, last night I offered to share this statement with critics — and with leaders where there are no critics as…
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Inquiry No. 24 ("Sober Second Thinking" Proposal)

Honourable senators, I am pleased to rise this afternoon to talk about the modernization of the Senate, specifically to speak to Senator Wallin’s inquiry of May 16, 2017, which encourages us to maintain momentum in evolving the Senate into a more vibrant, transparent, focused and deliberative institution. Senator Wallin told us she supports more and better planning, scheduling and grouping of debates over consecutive days with the goal of providing more effective sober second t…
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Bill C-4 (Labour Relations) - Third Reading

Honourable senators, I rise today to speak about Bill C-4, which in my view would restore a fair and balanced approach to labour relations in Canada by repealing the provisions enacted by two private members' bills during the last session of Parliament. We know the numbers well by this point: Bill C-525 and Bill C-377.I was concerned about these bills when they were introduced and passed, so I'm delighted to have the opportunity to revisit them now.As you know, Bill C-525 remov…
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