End of Manitoba's controversial education reform bill could come in several ways: political scientist

Although the federal election campaign is almost a week old, thelawn signs from the majorpolitical parties have a long way to go in Manitoba to catch up to the sheer volume of placards denouncing Bill 64.

For months, yards across the provincehave been dotted with signs part of campaigns by the Opposition NDP, the Manitoba Liberals and the Manitoba Teachers' Society denouncing the Progressive Conservative government's proposed legislation to reform Manitoba's education system.

"There are so many lawn signs in so many colours with so many messages telling you how terrible Bill 64 is, I'm sure it's put some sign makers' children through college," quippedNDPLeader Wab Kinew.

Now, the controversial legislation also decried by a marching band and protesters at the legislatureseems likely to die.

The question, though, is how.

The first true death tollfor the bill sounded with Premier Brian Pallister'srecent announcement he will resign as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party, but it struck louder this week when Tory leadership candidate Heather Stefanson promisedshe would kill the bill if elected.

"Bill 64 will be done," the Tuxedo MLA said in announcing her leadership bid on Wednesday.

Education Minister Cliff Cullen was among the PC caucus members at Stefanson's launch who cheered her announcement astriking detail for political watcher Chris Adams.

A minister having "that very soft support for something you are supposed to be stick-handling through the assembly, I mean, that speaks volumes for a political scientist watching this thing," said Adams, an adjunct professor of political studies at the University of Manitoba.

Cullen had previously supported the bill, arguing opposition to it was fuelled bya "misinformation campaign" led by the NDP, the Manitoba School Boards Association and theleadership of the Manitoba Teachers' Society.

In July, however, he did leave the door open to amendments to the legislation.

Path to the death of a bill

Adams says the PC government has a few options:amend the bill, cut it from the order paper altogether, forge ahead and attempt its passage as written, or prorogue the legislature.

"Proroguing is sort of like pulling the plug, or an emergency solution to a problem," Adams said.

Proroguingwould effectively killlegislation on the table not just Bill 64, but any other bills the Tories had hoped to pass in the fall session.

Adams says the bill as presented is now so unpopular even among PC members it would likely be defeated and trigger a defeat of the government and an election.

That is not something Liberal leader Dougald Lamont anticipates happening. His party paid for a thousand of the lawn signs calling for the bill's demise.

"I think they're going to have to tuck the tail between their legs and find some way of pulling it," he told CBC News.

He thinks that's mostly likely, followed by prorogation.

"And then the third possibility is an amendment, which I think is the least likely."

The NDP's Kinew isn't fussed about how the bill goes down, as long as it's done.

"To me, how the bill gets killed isn't as important as let's just see it eliminated overall,"Kinew said Friday.

When asked about the status of Bill 64, a spokesperson for the government told CBC News PC House leader Kelvin Goertzen will"address issues related to the fall session prior to the session commencing in October."

What may happen to a bill that is limbo?

3 years ago

Duration 2:29

Bill 64 may go down as one of the most disliked pieces of legislation in many years that never came into law here in our province. The Progressive Conservatives proposed overhaul of the education system has an uncertain future.