Friday, July 3, 2026
ADVT 
National

Parties agree on hybrid Commons sittings

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 23 Sep, 2020 08:04 PM
  • Parties agree on hybrid Commons sittings

The House of Commons will sit this fall with most MPs participating by video link so they can stay physically apart during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Government House leader Pablo Rodriguez introduced a motion to set the rules for "hybrid" sittings as the Commons sat for the first time in months Wednesday afternoon.

Those include having MPs vote via video conference until a secure remote voting application for smartphones is ready, and reducing the number of members who have to be physically present for quorum.

The plan also includes reconstituting committees such as a special body examining Canada-China relations.

The Conservatives had argued for in-person sittings only, with limited numbers of MPs in the chamber, and had opposed electronic voting.

But the MPs present Wednesday, including Tories, approved the plan unanimously.

The arrangement is to stay in place until Dec. 11, though MPs could vote to extend it then.

MORE National ARTICLES

Victim of Catholic priest awarded $844,000 by court

Victim of Catholic priest awarded $844,000 by court
A former elementary school teacher who says she was sexually assaulted by a Roman Catholic priest more than 40 years ago in Kamloops, B.C., has been awarded nearly $850,000 in damages by a judge.

Victim of Catholic priest awarded $844,000 by court

Two B.C. parents challenge school reopening plans

Two B.C. parents challenge school reopening plans
Two fathers have filed an injunction application demanding the British Columbia government implement tougher safety measures aimed at protecting students from the risks of COVID-19 before schools reopen.

Two B.C. parents challenge school reopening plans

WATCH: NHL gets backlash for not speaking up sooner on Jacob Blake Shooting, China will not ship vaccine to Canada

WATCH: NHL gets backlash for not speaking up sooner on Jacob Blake Shooting, China will not ship vaccine to Canada
WATCH- NHL takes heat on social media and from critics for not responding earlier to the anti-racism rhetoric in the wake of the Jacob Blake shooting. No vaccine for Canada from China. 

WATCH: NHL gets backlash for not speaking up sooner on Jacob Blake Shooting, China will not ship vaccine to Canada

B.C. report urges health regulation reforms

B.C. report urges health regulation reforms
A report recommends cutting the number of regulatory colleges governing health professionals in British Columbia from 20 to six to improve public protection.

B.C. report urges health regulation reforms

Champagne pushes Lebanon, China on first trip

Champagne pushes Lebanon, China on first trip
Canada's foreign minister was bound for London for private talks with a trusted ally after butting heads with leading figures from Lebanon and China, capping a bubble-bursting, four-country tour amid an unprecedented global pandemic.

Champagne pushes Lebanon, China on first trip

Tories ask speaking agency to deliver WE docs

Tories ask speaking agency to deliver WE docs
The federal Conservatives are calling on a speaking agency through which WE Charity paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to members of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's family to hand over all documents about the arrangements.

Tories ask speaking agency to deliver WE docs