Quebec MNAs pass controversial Hydro bill after midnight

QUEBEC CITY -- Elected officials sat until late at the National Assembly in Quebec City Saturday evening because the CAQ government chose to impose the gag order and force the expeditious passage of Bill 34, which freezes electricity rates in 2020 and then pushes them up with inflation.

The bill exempts Hydro-Québec from an annual review by the Régie de l'énergie.

• Read more on Bill 34 and opposition to it.

The bill was passed shortly after midnight, 60 votes to 39.

All the opposition parties in Quebec denounced it. It was the third gag order to pass a bill in six months for the government of François Legault.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 8, 2019.

This is a developing story that will be updated.

Bill 34, an act to simplify the process for establishing electricity distribution rates by cfcfmontrealweb on Scribd

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  Quebec Premier Francois Legault responds to the Opposition during question period, Saturday, December 7, 2019 at the legislature in Quebec City. For the third time since taking power in October 2018, the Legault government will use closure to push a law through the National Assembly. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot