As MPs prepare to collectively decide whether to sign off on the billions of dollars in proposed new spending outlined in the latest supplementary estimates, there’s no word yet on whether Prime Minister Mark Carney is planning to face his opposition adversaries from his front-and-centre seat in the chamber this afternoon.

He will, however, be back in the parliamentary precinct to chair a closed-door huddle with his front bench team (10 a.m.), and is also slated to make an earlier appearance at the National Prayer Breakfast. (7:50 a.m.)

Meanwhile, as predicted in What We’re Watching, the House of Commons is on track to wrap up the current supply cycle later this afternoon.

For their part, the Conservatives have filed the necessary paperwork to use their last allotted day to make the case for their party’s plan to “double automotive production through a tariff-free auto pact,” which, as per the non-binding motion currently on notice, would include “making it easier to build and buy Canadian by removing the GST on all Canadian-made vehicles, ending counterproductive Liberal EV mandates and rebates,” as well as “protecting North American supply chains by maintaining the minimum 75 per cent North American content and existing CUSMA rules of origin” and “creating a harmonized North American cybersecurity and data standard, while banning vehicles using software connected to China or Russia.”

As per standard parliamentary conventions, both the estimates and the accompanying interim supply bill are automatically designated as questions of confidence, but there’s no requirement to hold a recorded vote, but deemed to have been “adopted on division,” which indicates that the motion was passed, but not unanimously.

Also on the radar: Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree will field questions — and, most likely, critiques — over the proposed new expenditures submitted on behalf of his department and other agencies and organizations under his ministerial purview during an afternoon session with PUBLIC SAFETY AND NATIONAL SECURITY members, with senior officials from the Canada Border Services Agency, Canadian Security Intelligence Service, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Correctional Service of Canada also expected to be at the table. (3:30 p.m.)

Later this evening, the SPECIAL JOINT COMMITTEE ON MEDICAL ASSISTANCE IN DYING will focus on the current eligibility requirements — and, more specifically, the eligibility of people “whose sole underlying medical condition is a mental illness,” during a two-hour session with academic, legal and medical experts. (7:30 p.m.)

ON AND AROUND THE HILL

• The lead organizers of the Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver Pride festivals launch a joint call for “urgent federal support (to) help ensure Pride events remain strong, safe and sustainable,” as well as outline how “post-pandemic rises in security, policing, permits, insurance and staffing costs are creating significant financial challenges.” (10 a.m.)
• A delegation of Quebec municipal leaders and industry representatives, including Saguenay Mayor Luc Boivin and Table régionale des élus municipaux de la Chaudière-Appalaches president Daniel Turcotte, outline the impact of new restrictions on the temporary foreign workers program, which, as the advisory notes, were introduced last year and “continue to have significant consequences for workers and businesses in the region.” (11 a.m.)
• Later this afternoon, New Democrat MP Jenny Kwan hits the West Block Foyer with a delegation of “post-secondary student representatives” to “highlight the Liberal government’s plan to cut student financial aid and student grants.” (1 p.m.)

OUTSIDE THE PRECINCT

Women and Gender Equality Minister Rechie Veldez, whose portfolio also includes small business and tourism, teams up with Quebec Business Women’s Network CEO Ruth Vachon, Women’s Enterprise Organizations of Canada CEO Victoria Lennox and “representatives from the entrepreneurial ecosystem and national partners” to highlight the launch of a new platform “dedicated to women entrepreneurs,” which as per the advisory, will “enable them to grow their businesses through meaningful connections.” (9 a.m.)

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson spends another day making the rounds at CERAWeek in Houston, which bills itself as “the foremost annual gathering in the energy sector,” and where he’s booked in for back-to-back panel discussions on “building Canada’s energy future” and “funding the infrastructure supercycle” before wrapping up his visit to Texas with an appearance on the ARC Energy Podcast.

IN THE CHAMBER

Later this afternoon, Conservative MP Jeff Kibble will get his final chance to make the case for his backbench bid to restrict parole eligibility in cases where someone has been convicted of the “abduction, sexual assault and murder of the same victim in respect of the same event or series of events,” which will go to a make-or-break second-reading vote tomorrow afternoon.

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Committee highlights courtesy of our friends at iPoliticsINTEL