A Canadian space law amendment allowing for the prosecution of crimes committed on the Moon passed Canada’s House of Commons at the end of April, Euronews reported on Thursday.
Members of Canada’s House of Commmons, or lower house of parliament, voted 181 to 144 in favor of the space law amendment on April 29, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported on May 5. The legislation would extend Canada’s criminal jurisdiction into outer space.
“The new act being scrutinised by parliamentarians essentially extends Canadian law to space, meaning that anything that would be illegal in Canada will become illegal on board spacecraft travelling to the Lunar Gateway, on the Gateway itself and on the surface of the Moon,” Euronews observed on May 5.
The Lunar Gateway is a planned space outpost that would orbit the Moon starting in 2024, according to the U.S. federal government’s…
