OTTAWA -- The House of Commons has passed another emergency aid bill, this time implementing an aspect of the federal government鈥檚 promised support for farmers.
Bill C-16 -- the fourth pandemic-prompted piece of legislation -- passed after hours of deliberation, with members of the opposition parties granting the minority Liberals the unanimous support needed to fast-track the bill.
The emergency session got underway Wednesday afternoon with Agriculture and Agri-Food Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau tabling bill, following the pre-scheduled in-person meeting of the special all-party COVID-19 committee.
The bill passed on division, and will now be studied by the Senate on Friday, a necessary step before it receives royal assent.
Last Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the federal government would provide $252 million in new federal assistance for Canadian farmers and others in the agri-food sector to help redistribute food and better protect workers in processing plants.
As part of this package, the government said it intended to increase the Canadian Dairy Commission鈥檚 borrowing limit by $200 million, to cover costs related to having to store excess cheese and butter.
By agreeing to pass the bill, MPs have agreed to increase the Dairy Commission鈥檚 borrowing limit to $500 million from $300 million.
鈥淚n this challenging time, COVID-19 is placing enormous pressures on the entire sector,鈥� Bibeau said, adding that the changes proposed are 鈥渧ital.鈥�
Wednesday鈥檚 sitting once again had a smaller cadre of staff on-site, and in instances where remaining physical distance is not possible, the House of Commons administration advised
The Senate鈥檚 sitting on Friday will have similar public health parameters in place.
In addition to the handful of in-person sitting days there has been since regular business was suspended in March, MPs began a hybrid schedule of virtual and in-person question and answer sessions two weeks ago.
The regular session is slated to resume May 25, unless an agreement to extend the suspension is reached or a more formal agreement around a virtual House of Commons is struck.
Public access to both chambers of Parliament has been restricted for two months.
