Parliamentary Paralysis
Trudeau’s resignation as Canadian Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal Party on Monday, March 6th, did not come as a surprise. Trudeau, who has been Prime Minister since 2015, has seen his popularity plummet in recent years, with several MPs also calling for him to step down.
The process of finding a new leader will take some time, with Trudeau requesting that parliament be prorogued until March 24th. This will leave any ongoing bills, including the National Framework on Advertising for Sports Betting Act in serious trouble.
Parliament was originally supposed to reconvene on January 27th, with the bill likely to be discussed then. The bill was advanced by the Senate in November but hit some roadblocks when it entered the House, with the Liberals and Conservatives unable to come to terms.
Trudeau has insisted that his resignation was necessary to prevent further parliamentary paralysis, but it means some bills are likely to remain unresolved.
Political Uncertainty
Per Canadian law, any bill that has not received Royal Assent is ‘entirely terminated’ following the prorogation of parliament. However, this does not mean that we have seen the end of the National Framework on Advertising for Sports Betting Act, with a provision allowing the bill to be brought back at the most recent stage if a motion to do so is agreed.
However, given the current state of Canadian politics, it is difficult to imagine that sports betting advertising is going to be a priority when parliament reconvenes after over three months of closure.
Then, of course, there is the question about the future leadership of the country. Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the Conservative Party, is likely to call a vote of no confidence in the Liberal Party and trigger an early election, with his party heavily favoured to take over. It remains unclear exactly where this will leave the gambling industry in Canada moving forward.
