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In his resignation speech on Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Parliament would be prorogued until March 24. The move will give the Liberal party time to find a new leader ahead of an expected confidence vote that could trigger an early election in 2025.
“I intend to resign as party leader, as prime minister, after the party selects its next leader through a robust, nationwide, competitive process,” Trudeau told reporters in Ottawa on Monday. “This country deserves a real choice in the next election, and it has become clear to me that if I’m having to fight internal battles, I cannot be the best option in that election.”
What is prorogation?
Prorogation is a procedural tool that essentially halts the work of Parliament while allowing the government to remain in power. During a period of prorogation, members of Parliament do not sit in the House of Commons, their committee work is suspended, and outstanding bills that have yet to become law are terminated.
The most recent parliamentary session was scheduled to resume from its winter break on Jan. 27, after which Trudeau’s minority government could have quickly faced a non-confidence motion from opposition parties that would have triggered a federal election.
“Prorogation of a session brings to an end all proceedings before Parliament,” the House of Commons’ procedural guide explains. “In general, during a prorogation, Members are released from their parliamentary duties until, in the new session, the House and its committees resume activities.”
By proroguing parliament until March 24, Trudeau is basically buying time for his embattled party to hold a leadership race before the federal Conservative and NDP parties can topple the Liberal government, which has held power since 2015. As polls showed his popularity plummeting, Trudeau had been facing growing calls to resign from within his own party.
What happens next?
Parliament is technically prorogued by the Governor General on advice of the Prime Minister. Since it only pauses parliamentary activity, prorogation is different from the “dissolution” of parliament, which automatically triggers a general election. Unfinished bills terminated by prorogation can be re-introduced in the next parliamentary session. Until then, many unfulfilled government promises will remain in limbo.
The co-founder of Democracy Watch, a non-profit that advocates for democratic reform and government accountability, was critical of Trudeau’s move.
“Because a prorogation cancels all the bills being reviewed by Parliament, it can waste away all the time and taxpayer money that went into developing and reviewing those bills,” Duff Conacher told CTVNews.ca. “Because a prorogation stops the daily Question Period in the House of Commons and House and Senate committee meetings, it also allows the government to escape accountability for its decisions and actions and any wrongdoing. Both of these effects hurt our democratic process while protecting the ruling party.”
Trudeau previously prorogued parliament in August 2020 as his government charted a COVID-19 recovery plan while also facing the WE Charity scandal.
Trudeau’s advisers had received legal guidance indicating that March 24 was the longest the government could go without approving new spending. The next parliamentary session will begin with a throne speech outlining the government’s intentions and priorities, which would also set the stage for key confidence votes.
With files from CTV News National Correspondent Rachel Aiello