MPs to begin debating new NAFTA bill
Bill C-100, the “Canada United States Mexico Agreement Implementation Act” was tabled on May 29 by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. This is the first time the legislation is coming up for debate since then, which has prompted some questions about the likelihood it’ll be able to pass through the House and Senate before Parliament is scheduled to adjourn at the end of the month.
Even though it is now beginning to move through the various legislative stages, there are less than two weeks left before MPs are set to rise. This means that unless the Liberals decide to either extend or reconvene the House, it’ll have to pass through various stages of debate and committee study before June 21.
The more-than-150-page bill to implement the renegotiated NAFTA deal includes the legislative amendments needed to apply the new trade rules, but leaves the government some wiggle room so that it can ensure the text is aligned with whatever comes out of ongoing ratification processes in the United States and Mexico.