A Trudeau cabinet minister says amending the Elections Act — to push back the next federal election — may not proceed as planned. Conservative MPs were livid by attempts to secure parliamentary pensions for some 80 elected officials.

Dominic LeBlanc, the public safety minister, earlier proposed to move the 2025 general election from October 20, 2025, to October 27, by amending Bill C-65, An Act To Amend The Canada Elections Act.

The minister justified the proposed legislative change to accommodate Hindus, Sikhs, and Buddhists observing Diwali on Monday, October 20, 2025. 

He claimed the bill would strengthen Canada's democracy, while making no mention of taxpayer-funded pensions.

Conservative MP Michael Cooper later claimed the Liberal-NDP coalition government only cared about securing their pensions.

NDP MP Lisa Marie Barron fired back, accusing the Conservatives of “completely delaying” the entire bill.

Records show Treasury Board President Anita Anand, Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, and Tourism Minister Soraya Martinez Ferrada would benefit from delaying election day one week.

Another 25 Liberal and New Democrat MPs would also benefit from the bill, as well as dozens of Conservatives and Bloc Québécois MPs.

“The fact that you profess ignorance of that fact is only because you’ve been caught, and the fact that you’re willing to back down is, again, because you’ve been caught,” Cooper said. 

“I’m going to put the question to you once again, the question you refused to answer ... whose idea was it to pad your pockets?” he asked LeBlanc. The minister deflected, claiming Cooper demonstrated “supreme arrogance” in suggesting that no Conservative MP would lose their seat. 

Pension benefits currently average $77,900 a year under the Members Of Parliament Retiring Allowances Act. Two-term MPs first elected in 2019 do not qualify until Tuesday, October 21, 2025, a day after the fixed election date.

MPs who meet the legislative requirements can receive reduced pensions at the age of 55 with full pensions paid out at 65. Those who do not qualify are refunded their pension contributions.

A government spokesperson earlier claimed the legislative change had nothing to do with pensions. Minister LeBlanc reiterated that claim on Thursday. 

He claimed the pension entitlement had “nothing to do with that decision to move the date.” 

LeBlanc furthered that if committee members decide to “return the date seven days earlier,” he would not object.

Conservative MP Eric Duncan then asked the minister about a “secret meeting” on January 25, where Liberal and NDP MPs, and their political staff, met with Elections Canada to discuss tabling Bill C-65. 

“Do you think it’s appropriate that [only] the NDP … got access to … briefings that were not offered to any other party?” he asked. LeBlanc said the meetings were “routine” and “normal,” citing their Supply and Confidence Agreement with New Democrats at the time. 

“You find it shocking that parliamentarians work together in a collaborative way,” the minister fired back. “We think it’s something that Canadians would find very positive.”

Duncan said the meetings were “completely inappropriate,” as not all opposition parties received “access to information and documents and crafted a bill.”

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