Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said in a statement Monday evening that while his party stands ready to go as far as supporting the enactment of the Emergencies Act — legislation giving Ottawa powers to do just about anything deemed necessary to cope with the pandemic — the Conservatives will not allow the Liberals unfettered control of the public purse.

«Over the last week, we have negotiated for the return of Parliament expecting to enact the emergency measures the prime minister announced last week,» Sheer said. «We remain willing to enact those measures if the government proposes them tomorrow.»

«But we will not give the government unlimited power to raise taxes without a parliamentary vote,» he added. «We will authorize whatever spending measures are justified to respond to the situation, but we will not sign a blank cheque.»

The House of Commons is set to reconvene Tuesday with just over 30 MPs from all parties attending. The number of MPs from each party was agreed by House leaders beforehand as a way to keep people safe while maintaining party ratios in the Commons.

But as the details of the bill began to emerge, at least two Conservative caucus members, Sen. Linda Frum and MP Cathy McLeod, pledged to flout the risk of travelling and come to Ottawa to vote it down.

«I will hop on a plane immediately to vote against if this is true,» said McLeod. «Completely unacceptable and not my understanding of agreement.»

According to Conservative sources, the party supports the coronavirus bill generally but is concerned about a lack of oversight on spending regardless how long the lack of oversight persists.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said he wants to keep the return of Parliament focused on helping Canadians in need.

«We need to drop what we don’t agree on and focus on what we were sent here to do — deliver for Canadians,» he said in a statement.

Tuesday’s events will be presided over by Deputy Speaker of the House Bruce Stanton, who will lay out how the day will work in a short speech just after noon.

The day will begin with the Speakers Parade, the parliamentary tradition that kicks off each sitting of the Senate. This time, however, all those in the procession led by the Usher of the Black Rod will stay at least two metres away from one another.

Keeping a healthy distance in the parade is just one way the House of Commons will change its traditions to help stop the spread of COVID-19 between people.

Hand sanitizer stations will be placed strategically throughout the House and the public gallery will remain closed.

The number of MPs attending the session has been cut back from the full 338 to just over 30. Normally, MPs have to be in their seats to vote, but this rule is being relaxed to allow MPs to maintain a distance from one another of at least the width of two desks.

There also will be no parliamentary pages in the House today — so MPs will have to get their own water.

An unusual session of Parliament

Once Morneau has given his speech and tabled his bill, opposition MPs will be given the opportunity to question the government’s proposals.

That question and answer session will take place in a more relaxed setting called the Committee of the Whole — a rare occasion when the entire membership of the House of Commons sits as a parliamentary committee, with the deputy Speaker chairing the session.

Morneau will take questions and is allowed to have three departmental officials help him flesh out the answers.

Rodriguez has said parties have agreed to devote four to four-and-a-half hours to debate, after which a vote will be held. If the bill passes the House, it will be sent to the Senate on Wednesday; assuming it’s passed there, it will quickly receive royal assent.

The proposed aid package includes:

• A temporary boost to Canada Child Benefit payments, delivering about $2 billion in extra support.
• A new Emergency Care Benefit of up to $900 biweekly, up to 15 weeks, to provide income support to workers, including the self-employed, who have to stay home and don’t qualify for paid sick leave or employment insurance. The measure could disburse up to $10 billion.
• A new Emergency Support Benefit to provide up to $5 billion in support to workers who are not eligible for EI and who are facing unemployment.
• A six-month, interest-free reprieve on student loan payments.
• A doubling of the homeless care program.
• An extension of the tax filing deadline to June 1.
• A policy change allowing taxpayers to defer until after Aug. 31 tax payments that are due after today and before September.
• $305 million for a new Indigenous Community Support Fund to address immediate needs in First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation communities.

Conservative support

Conservative MP Garnett Genuis told CBC that the pace at which the legislation needs to be passed will make it difficult to pass amendments, and that Conservative supporters want his party to be constructive and point out gaps in the bill.

Scheer said he wants additional supports for retail and restaurant workers who have lost their jobs.

«We are, of course, recognizing this is an unprecedented situation for this government but at the same time it’s our job to point out some of the things that haven’t always been clear and consistent to Canadians,» Scheer told CBC News Sunday.

«We are still advocating for a better response to this pandemic but we’re doing so in a way that I hope instills some confidence in Canadians that our institutions will work, our Parliament will work and that we will all get through this together.»

Scheer also said that he wants any assistance provided to Canadians now to be tied to the COVID-19 outbreak and to be scaled back once the threat diminishes.