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C-13: Cloning and Bio-Ethics |
The Future of Bill C-13
What happens now?
On November 12, 2003, outgoing Prime Minister Jean Chretien announced he would prorogue
Parliament until January 12th. Normally, any legislation that hasn’t passed both Houses
when Parliament is prorogued is killed. Under this rule, Bill C-13 would die on the
order table, since it had only received second reading in the Senate before Parliament
was prorogued.
However, the government can pass a motion resurrecting any piece of legislation at
exactly the same stage it was when Parliament was prorogued. It is thought that Paul
Martin will use this rule to resurrect several pieces of legislation when Parliament
reconvenes in early 2004. Bill C-13 may be one of these.
The Senate has vowed not to “rubber stamp” any bill resurrected in this manner, but
to seriously consider each piece of legislation. Nonetheless, Bill C-13 is expected
to receive strong support. However, given that it must make it through the Senate by
the next federal election (which is expected to take place in Spring 2004), Bill C-13
may still not become law.
If the bill dies, political analysts don’t expect the federal government to try again
in the near future. It took ten years to pass AHR legislation through the House of Commons.
Even then, a government with a comfortable majority needed to seek support from a minority
party to pass the bill, due to opposition from its own backbenches. Instead of legislation
and a regulatory agency, the field of AHR will continue to be governed by CIHR guidelines
– which apply only to publicly funded projects, and can be changed at any time. It is
ironic that, in opposing the legislation, religious organizations may only have succeeded
in enabling scientists and researchers to perform embryonic and stem cell research in
a more loosely regulated environment.
Further Reading
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