Wreath bearers get ready to lead the procession from the Sunnybook Veterans Centre toward the cenotaph during Remembrance Day ceremonies in Toronto, Ontario Monday, November 11, 2013.Kevin Van Paassen/The Globe and Mail
A New Democrat MP's bid to make Remembrance Day a national statutory holiday is now one step closer to reality.
A private member's bill that seeks to make Nov. 11 a recognized holiday across Canada passed second reading tonight in the House of Commons by a vote of 258 to 2.
The legislation, introduced by NDP MP Dan Harris, will now be examined by the Commons heritage committee before it returns to the House for a final vote.
Bill C-597 would see Remembrance Day treated the same as other statutory days off, such as Christmas and Canada Day.
Remembrance Day is already a paid day off for federal workers and in the three territories, as well as in six provinces — Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia — but not in Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and Manitoba.
Harris predicts that making Remembrance Day a national statutory holiday will result in more people attending remembrance services.