BILL C-229 - First Reading

	PETITION FOR INQUIRY
Canada Elections Act applies	47. The Canada Elections Act applies, as far as it is applicable and with the necessary modifications, to a petition for an inquiry under section 48.
Petition for inquiry	48. (1) Where any fifty electors in an electoral district are not satisfied with the conduct of the referendum in their district, they may, within twenty working days after the returning officer has made a public declaration in accordance with section 168 of the Canada Elections Act, file a petition with a judge of a superior court for an inquiry as to the conduct of the referendum or of any person connected with it.
Respondent	(2) If the petition complains of the conduct of a returning officer or deputy returning officer, the person against whom the com plaint is directed shall be a respondent.
Grounds stated	(3) The petition shall allege the specific grounds on which the complaint is founded, and no grounds other than those stated shall be investigated, unless the court so orders and upon reasonable notice being given, which leave may be given upon such terms and conditions as the court considers just.
Number of votes	(4) Notwithstanding subsection (3), evi dence may be given to prove that the total number of valid votes recorded for each of the two answers to the question was other than that declared.
Form	(5) Subject to section 60, the petition shall be in the form prescribed by the Chief Electoral Officer and shall be filed in the court nearest to the place where the referendum was held.
Who may be respondents	49. Any six voters in the electoral district may, at any time not later than three working days before the commencement of the inquiry, file in the court in which the petition is filed a notice in writing of their intention to oppose the petition, and shall thereupon be deemed to be the respondents of the petition.
Determi- nation of judge as to result of referendum	50. At the conclusion of the trial of a petition for an inquiry, the court
	(a) shall determine whether, by reason of some irregularity that in its opinion materi ally affected the result of the referendum, the referendum is void; or
	(b) shall determine the total number of valid votes recorded for each of the two answers to the question.
New poll	51. (1) The court, on declaring a referen dum void under section 50, shall notify the returning officer accordingly, and a new referendum shall be taken in the manner prescribed by this Act in the case of a referendum.
Date	(2) The new referendum shall be taken on a day fixed by the returning officer, which day shall be not later than thirty working days after the date on which notice of the voided referendum is given to the returning officer.
Same list of electors	(3) At a new referendum, the same roll of electors shall be used as was used at the voided referendum.
	OFFENCES
Interfering with or influencing voters	52. (1) Every person commits an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 who, at a referen dum,
	(a) in any way interferes with any voter, either in the polling station or while the voter is on the way to the polling station, with the intention of influencing the voter or advising the voter as to the vote;
	(b) at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, in, in view of or in hearing of a polling station, participates in any demonstration or procession having direct or indirect refer ence to the referendum, by any means whatsoever;
	(c) at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, makes any statement having direct or indirect reference to the referendum, by means of any loudspeaker or public address apparatus or radio or television apparatus other than a publication by radio or televi sion broadcast made by a broadcaster
	(i) an advertisement placed by the Chief Electoral Officer or a returning officer,
	(ii) a non-partisan advertisement broad cast, as a community service, by a broadcaster, or
	(iii) news in relation to the referendum;
	(d) at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, conducts in relation to the referendum a public opinion poll of persons voting before the day on which the referendum is held;
	(e) at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, conducts a public opinion poll in relation to the referendum;
	(f) at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, or at any time on any of the three days immediately preceding that day, prints or distributes or delivers to any person any thing being or purporting to be an imitation of the voting paper to be used at the poll, together with any direction or indication as to the answer for which any voter should or should not vote, or in any way containing any such direction or indication, or having on it any matter likely to influence any vote;
	(g) at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, exhibits in or in view of any public place, or publishes, distributes or broad casts
	(i) any statement advising or intended or likely to influence a voter as to the answer for which the voter should or should not vote;
	(ii) any statement advising or intended or likely to influence any voter to abstain from voting, or
	(iii) any statement, name, emblem, slo gan or logo identified with any answer to which the referendum relates or with any proponent of any such answer, other than
	(A) a statement, name, emblem, slo gan or logo in a newspaper published before 6 p.m. on the day before the day on which the referendum is held,
	(B) a statement, name, emblem, slogan or logo that does not relate specifically to the referendum and that is so exhibited before the day on which the referendum is held in a fixed position and in relation to the national or regional or campaign headquarters, other than a mobile headquarters, of a proponent of any answer to a question to which the referendum relates, and is left exhibited on the day on which the referendum is held, or
	(C) the publication of the name of any proponent of any answer to a question to which the referendum relates in any news that relates to the referendum and that is published in a newspaper or other periodical or in a radio or television broadcast made by a broad caster;
	(h) at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, exhibits in or in view of any public place or distributes any ribbons, streamers, rosettes or items of a similar nature in colours that are identified with any answer to a question to which the referendum relates or with any proponent of any such answer, other than
	(i) ribbons, streamers, rosettes or items of a similar nature worn or displayed by any person, other than an election official, on the person or on any vehicle in colours that are identified with any answer to a question to which the referendum relates or with any proponent of any such answer, or
	(ii) a lapel badge worn by any person other than an election official;
	(i) exhibits or leaves in any polling booth any card or paper having on it any direction or indication as to how any person should vote or as to the method of voting; or
	(j) subject to any regulations made under this Act, at any time on the day on which the referendum is held before the close of the poll, within, or at the entrance to, or in the vicinity of, any polling place,
	(i) gives or offers to give any person any written or oral information as to any name or number on the official list of electors or any supplementary list being used at the election; or
	(ii) permits or offers to permit any person to examine any copy of the official list of electors or any supplementary list being used at the election.
Defence	(2) It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence against paragraph (1)(g) that relates to the exhibition in or in view of a public place of a statement, name, emblem, slogan or logo if the defendant proves that
	(a) the exhibition was inadvertent; and
	(b) the defendant caused the exhibition to cease as soon as the defendant was notified by a returning officer or deputy returning officer that the exhibition was taking place.
Exception	(3) Nothing in this section applies to any official statement or announcement made or exhibited under the authority of this Act or the Canada Elections Act.
Removal of names, emblems, etc	53. (1) The returning officer may, at any time on the day on which the referendum is held, before the close of the poll, cause to be removed, covered or obliterated
	(a) any statement advising or intended or likely to influence any elector as to the answer for which the elector should or should not vote;
	(b) any statement advising or intended or likely to influence any elector to abstain from voting; or
	(c) any name, emblem, slogan, or logo identified with any answer to the question to which the referendum relates or any propo nent of any such answer exhibited in or in view of any public place.
Exception	(2) Paragraph (1)(c) does not apply to ribbons, streamers, rosettes or items of a similar nature that are worn or displayed by any person, on the person or on a vehicle, in colours that are identified with any answer to the question to which the referendum relates or with a proponent of any such answer, or to a lapel badge worn by any person.
Exception	(3) Nothing in subsection (1) applies to a statement, name, emblem, slogan or logo that does not relate specifically to the referendum, is in a fixed position and is in relation to the national or regional or campaign headquar ters, other than a mobile headquarters, of a proponent of any answer to the question to which the referendum relates.
Expense	(4) Any expense incurred by the returning officer in carrying out the power conferred by subsection (1) may be recovered by the returning officer from the persons by whom or by whose direction the statement, name, emblem, slogan or logo was exhibited as a debt due by them jointly and severally to the Crown.
Offences	54. Every person commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $2,000, who, at a referendum,
	(a) except in accordance with any regula tions made under the Canada Elections Act or this Act in relation to special voters, possesses any voting paper other than the one received from the returning officer or deputy returning officer for the purpose of recording a vote; or
	(b) does or omits to do an act, other than an act to which section 52 of this Act applies, that if done or omitted to be done at an electoral poll would be an offence under the Canada Elections Act.
	MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Two or more referenda	55. Two or more referenda may be held under this Act on the same day.
Electronic voting	56. If, by an Act of Parliament, provision is made for the use of electronic balloting in elections, such methods shall apply also to balloting in a referendum under this Act.
Separate ballots papers	57. (1) For a referendum held concurrently with general federal elections or by-elections, a separate ballot shall be provided for the election and the referendum questions.
Several questions	(2) If there is more than one question on the ballot, questions placed on the ballot by petition shall be first, with the questions that received the larger numbers of signatures in the petitioning process being placed above those that received lesser numbers of signa tures;
Form	(3) Every ballot shall be in prescribed form and shall have a counterfoil and a stub, with a line of perforations between the ballot paper and the counterfoil and between the counter foil and the stub, provided that when a person votes electronically in accordance with proce dures established by an Act of Parliament, no ballot shall be required.
No appropriation	58. No expense incidental to the holding of a referendum under this Act shall be paid out of public funds unless Parliament has appro priated money to the purpose.
Schedules and forms	59. Subject to the provisions of this Act and to any regulations made under this Act, the Chief Electoral Officer may prescribe the form of any document required for the admin istration or taking of a referendum.
Regulations	60. The Governor in Council may make regulations
	(a) applying, with or without modifications, for the purpose of this Act, provisions of any regulation made under the Canada Elec tions Act;
	(b) prescribing forms in relation to the holding of a referendum;
	(c) prescribing the time at which, and the manner in which, special voters may vote at a referendum, whether or not at a polling place, and whether within or outside Cana da;
	(d) prescribing conditions upon or subject to which special voters may vote at a referendum;
	(e) prescribing, for the purposes of a referendum, different methods of voting for different classes of special voters; and
	(f) providing for any matter necessary for giving full effect to the provisions of this Act and its administration.
Right to petition House of Commons unaffected	61. Nothing in this Act affects the right of any person to petition either House of Parlia ment, or the jurisdiction of any committee or other body established by either House to deal with petitions to the House.
Amendments to this Act	62. This Act may be amended only by submitting the amendment to the voters as proposed legislation pursuant to the provi sions of this Act.

PETITION FOR INQUIRY

OFFENCES

MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS