Winter session at N.S. Legislature nears close as bills clear third reading

Michael Gorman · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 25, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

The extremity of the wintertime league astatine the Nova Scotia Legislature is wrong show aft aggregate pieces of authorities government cleared 3rd speechmaking connected Monday nighttime astatine Province House.

Bill 1, a arguable portion of omnibus authorities that saw aggravated nationalist blowback, passed with amendments to 2 of its astir contentious aspects.

As antecedently promised, the authorities withdrew provisions that would person allowed it to occurrence the auditor wide without origin and springiness furniture ministers the powerfulness to suppress reports from the office.

The authorities besides amended changes to entree to accusation laws truthful a authorities worker can't cull an exertion for being frivolous oregon vexatious without the support of the province's privateness commissioner.

Other aspects of Bill 1 that stay unchanged, however, see the extremity of fixed predetermination dates, wage and disbursal increases for MLAs, and the quality for the authorities to occurrence non-unionized civilian servants without cause.

It's that past facet of Bill 1 that received the astir attraction from absorption MLAs connected Monday night.

Interim Liberal Leader Derek Mombourquette said it has civilian servants fearing for their jobs and it's affecting morale. People who person opposed the measure enactment it volition mean civilian servants extracurricular a national volition person little occupation extortion than what is afforded long-serving retail workers done the provincial labour code.

"It's the implicit worst connection you could nonstop to the civilian service," Mombourquette said during debate.

The curate liable for the Public Service Commission, Twila Grosse, has said the authorities needs the flexibility to accommodate the nationalist work arsenic indispensable during the uncertain times of U.S. tariffs.

Grosse has pledged that anyone who loses their occupation would beryllium compensated beyond labour codification requirements, but she's besides said determination are nary plans for layoffs oregon reorganization wrong government.

University measure passes 3rd reading

The government's authorities giving it much oversight of the province's universities besides cleared 3rd reading.

Critics person said Bill 12 would let the authorities to person much powerfulness implicit however universities function and who serves connected boards, and risks interference successful their independency and operations.

But Advanced Education Minister Brendan Maguire has countered that the measure is alternatively astir ensuring universities stay fiscally sustainable for the agelong word and are successful a presumption to succeed.

Maguire has said recommendations successful a caller auditor general's study connected assemblage backing are successful enactment with what the authorities is trying to execute with Bill 12. He's repeatedly said the authorities does not mean to archer universities however to operate.

Bill 21, which creates a mechanics to repeal authorities that has been passed but not proclaimed after a decade, cleared 3rd reading.

The families of 2 men killed extracurricular bars pursuing interactions with bouncers voiced concerns that the Security and Investigative Services Act could perchance be one of those pieces of authorities that volition beryllium repealed by Bill 21.

Acting justness curate Barb Adams told the House connected Monday nighttime that the authorities has already made immoderate changes to marque cabarets safer and is committed to talking with the families astir however to bash more.

She noted that nary bills could beryllium repealed earlier sometime successful 2026.

"It is besides important to cognize that the entreaty timeline tin beryllium extended, allowing for further information of immoderate bill."

NDP Leader Claudia Chender called connected the authorities to travel done connected Adams's pledge.

"There are precise fewer cabarets and determination are very, precise galore bars wherever precise galore radical portion tons of intoxicant successful our state and wherever determination are fights," she said.

She called on the authorities to widen the aforesaid changes relating to cabaret information to each bars successful Nova Scotia.

Concerns astir deed transportation tax, income assistance rates

The government's authorities that is intended to interruption down interprovincial commercialized barriers passed 3rd reading.

Bill 36 would wide barriers betwixt Nova Scotia and immoderate different state consenting to walk reflector legislation. The authorities was forced to amend the measure aft provincial regulators noted it would unintentionally region their quality to modulate who is coming to the state to work.

The Financial Measures Act besides cleared 3rd reading.

That measure has been criticized for the lack of a meaningful summation to income assistance rates and for an summation successful the deed transportation taxation to 10 per cent from 5 per cent for non-Nova Scotia residents purchasing a seasonal home.

Last week, MLAs besides passed an amendment to the enactment that volition region the rebate connected the acquisition of caller vehicles manufactured by Tesla due to the fact that of CEO Elon Musk's transportation to U.S. President Donald Trump.

Finally connected Monday night, Bill 11 passed 3rd reading. Among different things, the authorities volition extremity the yearly work of a study connected exigency section closures successful the province.

Health Minister Michelle Thompson has said the papers is months aged by the clip it is published and much relevant, timely accusation astir the authorities of exigency departments is disposable online for the nationalist to consult.