The sitting was dominated by second-reading debate on Bill C-25, the Strong and Free Elections Act, which proposes wide-ranging amendments to the Canada Elections Act. The central political argument pitted the government’s claim that the bill would strengthen democracy against Conservative criticism that the Liberals have been too slow to act on foreign interference and that the bill omits key measures such as a functioning foreign influence registry.
Bill C-25, debated for most of the day, would extend election-period offences (foreign influence, bribery, misleading publications) to apply year-round and to nomination and leadership contests; ban anonymous contributions such as cryptocurrency and prepaid cards; tighten third-party financing rules so that only funds from Canadian citizens or permanent residents could be used for regulated activities; create new offences for deepfakes impersonating electoral actors and for knowingly spreading false information about the voting process; and give the commissioner of Canada Elections new investigative tools and higher penalties (up to $25,000 for individuals, $100,000 for entities). The bill would also require electors to sign only one nomination paper and prohibit a single official agent from acting for more than one candidate in the same riding, measures aimed at the “longest ballot committee” protest movement. All parties supported sending the bill to committee, but the Bloc Québécois expressed reservations about the single-signature rule, arguing it could breach ballot secrecy and be administratively burdensome. Conservatives welcomed the anti-long-ballot and foreign-interference provisions but pressed for amendments to close a 10% revenue exception for third parties and to increase penalties further. The Bloc and the Greens argued the bill should have restored the per-vote subsidy for political parties, a recommendation from the Hogue inquiry that the government did not include.
Oral Questions focused overwhelmingly on affordability and taxation. Conservatives repeatedly pressed the government to eliminate all federal taxes on gasoline and diesel for the rest of the year, citing data that 74% of Canadians say rising costs for essentials are straining their finances and that 43% are $200 away from insolvency. The government responded by listing its own measures—a 10¢-per-litre excise tax pause, GST cuts, the groceries and essentials benefit, and tax cuts for 22 million Canadians—and accused Conservatives of opposing those same programs. A secondary theme was foreign interference and ethics: Conservatives demanded the finance minister appear at committee over his partner’s role at Alto, a high-speed rail contractor, and criticized the government’s delay in implementing a foreign influence registry. The government defended the minister’s conduct and said the registry commissioner had been appointed.