You may find the following information useful in regard to the 2024 Spring Sitting.
Government Bills
Pursuant to Standing Order 74, all government bills to be dealt with during the 2024 Spring Sitting will have to be introduced and given first reading by the fifth sitting day – Thursday, March 14, 2024. The introduction of a government bill after that date will require the unanimous consent of the House. At each subsequent stage, the bill would require unanimous consent to proceed, if the government wishes to proceed with the bill during the 2024 Spring Sitting.
Length of the Sitting
Pursuant to Standing Order 75, once all government bills have been introduced the House Leaders shall meet for the purpose of achieving agreement upon the number of sitting days for the 2024 Spring Sitting. The Government House Leader will report to the House by the seventh sitting day - Tuesday March 19, 2024 - on the deliberations of the House Leaders regarding the length of the 2024 Spring Sitting. For your information:
- A 20-day Sitting, the shortest permitted under Standing Order 75(2), would see the House rise on Thursday, April 11, 2024.
- A 30-day Sitting, either agreed upon by the House Leaders or pursuant to Standing Order 75(3) (where there is no agreement between the Government House Leader and at least one other House Leader), would see the House rise on Tuesday, April 30, 2024.
- A 40-day Sitting, the longest permitted under Standing Order 75(2) would see the House rise on Thursday, May 16, 2024.
Note: The Legislative Assembly will not sit on Easter Monday, April 1, 2024. Also, the House may, by adopting a motion, decide to not sit on a day when it would otherwise normally meet. Adopting such a motion would alter the date on which the 20th, 30th or 40th sitting day would fall. Further in each of the past two spring Sittings, the length of Sitting that was agreed to was 32 days. A 32-day Sitting that began on Thursday, March 7, 2024, would end on Thursday, May 2, 2024.
Private Members' Business
Standing Order 14(1) says, “After the Daily Routine, on the first Wednesday of a Session that private members’ business is to be considered, and every second Wednesday thereafter, the order of business shall be as follows:
Opposition private members’ business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills
Motions Respecting Committee Reports
Government Designated Business
Government private members' business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills”
Pursuant to Standing Order 14(2), “After the Daily Routine, on the second Wednesday of a Session that private members’ business is to be considered, and every second Wednesday thereafter, the order of business shall be as follows:
Government private members’ business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills
Government Designated Business
Motions Respecting Committee Reports
Opposition private members’ business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills”
There are currently no Government private members in the Legislative Assembly. If there are no Government private members then the Orders of the Day, pursuant to Standing Order 14(2), revert to the next item, which is Government Designated Business.
Therefore, during the 2024 Spring Sitting which commences on Thursday, March 7, 2024, the schedule of private members’ business for the Sitting will be:
March 13 Government Business
March 20 Opposition Private Members Business
March 27 Government Business
April 3 Opposition Private Members Business
April 10 Government Business
April 17 Opposition Private Members (Should the Sitting last 23 or more days)
April 24 Government Business (Should the Sitting last 27 or more days)
May 1 Opposition Private Members (Should the Sitting last 31 or more days)
May 8 Government Business (Should the Sitting last 35 or more days)
May 15 Opposition Private Members (Should the Sitting last 39 or more days)
Given that the House will not sit on Easter Monday (April 1, 2024), any motion to be debated on Wednesday, April 3, 2024 will have to be on the Notice Paper on Tuesday, April 2, 2024, which means that notice of the motion will have to be given to the House, either orally (during the Daily Routine) or in writing (to the Clerk’s Table before 5:00 p.m.), by Thursday, March 28, 2024.
Opposition Private Members' Business
Standing Order 14.2(2) says, “At the beginning of each Session a roster shall be established for the purpose of determining the order of business on Wednesdays when Opposition private members’ business has precedence. The roster shall be set in the following manner:
(a) the Official Opposition shall have the first, second and fifth positions on the roster;
(b) a party or group in opposition to the government, other than the Official Opposition, shall have the third, fourth and sixth positions on the roster…”
The last opposition private member’s motion debated during the 2023 Fall Sitting was Motion No. 856 (standing in the name of Kate White, Leader of the Third Party), on which debate was adjourned. Motion No. 856 was at Position 6 in the roster. As debate began prior to 5:00 p.m., the roster now returns to position 1. Therefore, the roster for Opposition Private Members’ Business for the 2024 Spring Sitting will be:
- Position 1: Official Opposition (Yukon Party)
- Position 2: Official Opposition (Yukon Party)
- Position 3: Third Party (NDP)
- Position 4: Third Party (NDP)
- Position 5: Official Opposition (Yukon Party)
- Position 6: Third Party (NDP)
COVID-19 Procedures
For the 2024 Spring Sitting, pages will be in the Assembly to deliver messages and provide water service. Members may still have their own water bottles if they don’t wish for water to be delivered in glasses by the pages. Pages will not fill personal water bottles.