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S-241 — An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Indian Act
Every bill summarized in plain language. Not clear enough? Ask for an explanation.
S-241
An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Indian Act
CSG
In progress
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BILL S-241
An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Indian Act
Last activity : At consideration in committee in the Senate
CSG
In progress
Senate · 1st2025-11-20Senate · 2nd2026-03-12Senate · 3rdCommons · 1stCommons · 2ndCommons · 3rdRoyal assent
Sign-in required — one request per person, no anonymous requests
What it does, in plain language
- Lets a First Nation's governing body run and manage lottery schemes on or from its reserve, or name another person or authority to do so.
- Requires written notice to the Government of Canada and to each province where the reserve is located, stating the start date, before that authority is used.
- Allows the governing body to license lottery schemes run by charitable or religious groups, by fair and exhibition boards, and by operators at a public place of amusement on the reserve.
- Caps prizes at $500 each and the price of a chance to win at $2 for lottery schemes at a public place of amusement on the reserve.
- Permits agreements between a First Nation and a province, or between two First Nations, to sell tickets for lotteries authorized elsewhere, with consent from the authority that first approved the scheme.
- Keeps games run on computers, video devices, slot machines or dice outside licensed schemes, except for raffles and 50/50 draws whose proceeds go to charitable or religious purposes.
- Deems a reserve not to be part of the province for these gaming rules, starting on the date set out in the notice.
- Amends the Indian Act so band councils can pass by-laws regulating how these lottery schemes operate on the reserve.
🤖 AI-generated from the bill’s official text as introduced — may not reflect amendments adopted since.
✋ What does “challenging” mean?
Clicking “Ask for an explanation” is a citizen request for the bill's sponsor to explain it in plain language — and for us to keep an eye on it together.
An account (email) is required — one request per person, no anonymous requests. 🔥 At 1,000 requests on the same bill, a public post is made, in the hope an MP agrees to sponsor a petition to the House.
It works on any bill, including one that has already received royal assent — that is often the one people want to understand.
Votes in the Commons
Every recorded vote — who voted what, and by what margin.
On the “who voted what” detail — the House of Commons publishes each member's name for every recorded (nominal) vote (Yea / Nay / paired). The by-member breakdown above (the "+" button on each row) comes directly from that official source (ourcommons.ca), not an estimate. The party shown next to each name is taken from the current House roster; people who have since left the House appear separately under "Former members".
How to read a vote
Recorded vote
Members vote one by one and each choice is entered in the public record. That is what lets us say exactly who voted what — no interpretation.
Passed is not law
A passed vote clears ONE stage. A bill must pass both chambers and then receive royal assent before it becomes law.
Paired is not absent
In the Commons, two members from opposing sides can agree not to vote: their voices cancel out. It is neither an absence nor an abstention.
DossierCanada updates
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Hi! My name is
Martin Archambault
I'm 45, and dossiercanada.ca is your first step into democracy!
If we want people to understand politics, it has to be brought down to their level.
When I first tried to take an interest in it, on top of not knowing the jargon, bills came as two lines… and fifty PDFs. Most people would simply walk away.
So I had an idea: use artificial intelligence first to read through all of it, then to put it in plain words. That's how DossierCanada was born.
Alongside the AI recap, I've given people a lexicon that explains the basics of political jargon. Plain-language law exists — think of this as its equivalent for politics!
Parliament glossary
Parliamentary jargon, translated into everyday language.
Account and follows