Scheer wants in-person Parliament to resume on May 25, demands a fiscal update

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said today that Parliament should reconvene on May 25 for regular in-person sittings, arguing that the current practice of virtual meetings has run its course.

He also said Finance Minister Bill Morneau should table some sort of fiscal update in short order so that Canadians can take a closer look at the government’s books as pandemic spending continues to grow.

Speaking to reporters on Parliament Hill this morning, Scheer said provinces are starting to re-open their economies as the COVID-19 infection curve flattens, and the House of Commons should reopen as well. He said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been dodging the opposition

“Mr. Trudeau should not be using a health pandemic to avoid accountability and oversight and should not be eliminating the role of the peoples’ representatives,” Scheer said.

“The prime minister wants to sideline Parliament during an unprecedented pandemic, a crisis, an economic crisis, something that we haven’t seen since the 1920s,” he added in French.

Scheer said online meetings on the Zoom platform aren’t cutting it anymore and MPs should have a chance to question the government in the chamber.

He said the opposition has serious concerns about emergency relief benefit abuse and what he calls an “inflexible” commercial rent assistance program, and Trudeau should personally face his critics.

“We’ve always said virtual sitting can augment but it’s certainly no replacement,” he said. “Elected members of Parliament come here to be a voice for their constituents, to hold this government to account, and that needs to resume on May 25.”

Trudeau said Friday the current model — virtual sittings paired with a limited in-person sitting once a week — has worked well.

“I think it’s a balance that is yielding very good results. It allows all MPs to express the concerns of their regions or constituents,” he said, adding the current system should continue as it is now.