Parliamentary sessions, including committees and debates in the House of Commons, were suspended due to technical problems on Tuesday evening.
According to Deputy Speaker Chris d’Entremont, some members of Parliament could not get online at all, and the House of Commons streaming service Parlvu was not working.
Some MPs debating Bill C-21, the government’s latest gun control law, decided to end the debate because some participating members were barely able to participate.
“We are currently experiencing technical difficulties affecting en.commons.ca.,” Heather Bradley, the speaker’s director of communications, said in a statement Tuesday night. “These questions are not related to security.”
She added that work is underway to restore the Internet connection.
Postponed until Wednesday
The House of Commons and the Senate adjourn until Wednesday at 2:00 pm ET.
The committee investigating the government’s use of the Emergency Act also failed to meet.
It was scheduled to hear from Ontario Police Commissioner Thomas Carricke and former Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloli.
Sloli resigned amid harsh criticism on February 15, the day after the federal government enforced the Emergency Act.
At the time, the occupation of downtown streets by protesters demanding the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, and in some cases by the liberal government, lasted more than two weeks.
On June 2, Sloli told another parliamentary committee that the police and institutions in Canada were not prepared for the scale of the protests, nor for the organization and financial resources of the protesters.
It is not clear how the pause in debate will affect the government’s plans. The spring meeting is due to end this week, but the Liberals have signaled they want to pass key legislation, including the drunkenness law, before MPs leave for summer break.