Quebec’s National Assembly has passed a bill aimed at regulating Uber.
The bill passed by a vote of 57 for and 41 against, with all three opposition parties voting against the legislation.
The Liberals, led by Premier Philippe Couillard, denied proposed amendments that would have forced Uber to pay retroactive taxes in order to proceed with a three-month pilot project.
The heart of Bill 100 will come into effect in three months.
While the Parti Quebecois had originally been open to the bill but ended up voting against it, with transportation critic Martine Ouellet saying it is unfair to taxi drivers.
The union representing cab drivers bashed the legislation. In a statement spokesperson Benoit Jugand said the bill will create a two-tier system for taxi drivers in the province.
"The bond of trust is broken," he said. "We thought we were finally arriving at an acceptable compromise after two years of yo-yoing. The government is failing drivers and is once again putting the social peace at risk."
Quebec Solidaire had originally planned on backing Bill 100 but reversed course, saying the Liberals were shutting out their amendments.
“The government has betrayed its word,” said QS MNA Amir Khadir.
The Liberals used their majority to end debate on the legislation and forced a vote late Friday.
Liberal House Leader Jean-Marc Fournier said he was perplexed by QS’s decision not to back the bill.
“Last night, they consented, they knew what the bill was about,” he said. “It was the end. There’s no change. So ask them why they are not respecting their engagement. That’s for them to answer.”
Meanwhile, Coalition Avenir Quebec Leader Francois Legault said his party deserves credit for pushing the Liberals into engaging with Uber on the pilot project.
“With the economy, the bad economic situation that we have in Quebec, we cannot afford to not open the door to new technology, to new innovation like Uber,” he said.
- With files from The Canadian Press
