Some pretty slick parliamentary moves taking place in Ottawa

By Pepper Parr

June 16th, 2026

BURLINGTON, ON

For those that wonder what the federal government does for them, other than issuing them a passport, the following will be of interest.

Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne’s stand-alone request to transfer up to $1.173 billion to provincial and territorial governments will go through First, second and final reading in a single day. That’s what they can get away with when they are a majority government.

Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon (House Leader is a job Burlington MP Karina Gould had when she was in Cabinet) has served notice that he’s prepared to put Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne’s stand-alone request to transfer up to $1.173 billion to provincial and territorial governments “for the purpose of improving housing supply,” on the parliamentary fast track with a motion that, if adopted, would see the bill passed at all stages in a single day without ever leaving the floor of the House of Commons.

Handling the transfer of $1,173 billion is no small matter.  To have it approved in a single day is close to an abuse of parliamentary process.  The current Prime Minister and his Cabinet don’t appear to experience any discomfort doing business this way.  It will catch up with them in the fullness of time

Should this pass, and it will, those funds will go to the provinces and Ontario will be passing it along to the municipalities.

Applications for some of that money from the municipalities are due on Friday of this week – which is why there was a Special meeting of Council on Monday,