NDP holds out hope for more sitting days at legislature
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 31/05/2020 (1425 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
The Pallister government has rejected an opposition request for more legislative sitting days this month.
The Manitoba NDP and Liberals formally requested the restoration of regular sitting days in a joint letter Monday to government house leader Kelvin Goertzen.
When the Free Press asked for the government’s reaction, a spokesman for Goertzen wrote: “Discussions were held with the NDP and additional sitting time was offered. They did not accept the offer. As a result, the legislative assembly’s normal fall sittings will resume in October.”
The sessional calendar shows Oct. 7 as the next sitting day.
Opposition NDP Leader Wab Kinew is holding out hope for more sitting days soon, saying it’s in everyone’s best interest — including the government’s, so it can’t be accused of being “undemocratic.”
Manitoba is facing an unprecedented economic and health crisis and the decisions made now are crucial to the well-being of the province and its residents, Kinew said in an interview Monday. “It’s important to have accountability.”
The NDP worked with the Liberals to ask for more sitting days, and Kinew hopes the Tory government will agree to work them as well, so the house can resume working together in the best interest of Manitobans.
“I hope we do come back much sooner — as soon as this week,” he said. “I don’t think it’s acceptable that the government goes six or seven months without sitting in the legislature.”
The NDP and Liberals have raised the matter repeatedly in the Manitoba legislature as negotiations between the parties have so far failed to produce agreement on future sitting days.
The Manitoba legislature last sat May 27, for only the fifth time since March 19, with no future sessions scheduled. Opposition MLAs say Premier Brian Pallister seems intent on avoiding accountability for his actions during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
In a brief interview outside the chamber May 27, Goertzen said the Progressive Conservatives offered the Opposition one additional sitting day in June, but it was rejected. The only stipulation, he said, was the government wanted to see some bills pass in the afternoon, and the Opposition couldn’t agree to that.
