The House of Commons may be shuttered, but the Senate is still very much in session as Upper House denizens continue to work their way through the legislative to-do list, which, at press time, still includes that all-important final approval of the budget bill — one of the few things that actually does have to make it through to Royal Assent before the Red Chamber can close down for the summer — as well as the government’s efforts to tighten up the witness protection regime, modernize the rail safety laws, and perform technical tweaks to various and sundry tax laws.