Evidence of meeting #1 for Finance in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was motions.
A recording is available from Parliament.
11:50 a.m.
Mark Mahabir Committee Researcher
My name is Mark Mahabir. I have been with the committee since 2009. I'm a lawyer and my background is in tax law, intellectual property law, and corporate law.
11:50 a.m.
Michaël Lambert-Racine Committee Researcher
Good morning. My name is Michaël Lambert-Racine. I am an economist by training, and I have been working for this committee since last spring.
11:50 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Merci. Bienvenue.
I would like our clerk who started the meeting to introduce herself. By the way, she did an excellent job of preparing us for this meeting. I want to commend her for that.
11:50 a.m.
The Clerk
Thank you, Mr. Chair. It was a pleasure.
My name is Christine Lafrance.
I have been working as a clerk at the House of Commons since 2005.
11:50 a.m.
Rémi Bourgault Procedural Clerk
My name is Rémi Bourgault. I am the committee clerk assisting Christine today, as well as for another project that we may be discussing later on today or in the next weeks.
11:50 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Thank you.
Colleagues, we have a very busy fall agenda, so I am proposing that we get right into the planning and do this as an organization meeting. We have some topics. I'm going to go through the orders that were dealt with in the House. We will deal with routine motions, and then I'm proposing that we discuss future business.
You should all have the documents in front of you, as well as the motions and the proposed calendar.
I will just go right into the orders from the House. Does everyone have these documents?
11:50 a.m.
An hon. member
No.
11:50 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Let's allow them to be distributed then.
You should have routine motions and you should have a proposed calendar.
With respect to orders from the House, first of all, on October 21, the House adopted a motion requesting that the committee table a report on income inequality no later than December 11, 2013. This is the issue we were dealing with in the last session. This enables the committee to have more time. So we will have to table that report on December 11.
Second, the House has adopted a motion authorizing the committee to table its pre-budget consultation report no later than December 11, 2013, instead of November 29. Again, this will give the committee more time to deal with this issue.
Third, the House has adopted a motion re-establishing all evidence received by the committee in relation to these studies, income inequality and pre-budget consultations, from the 41-1 session in the 41-2 session. This means that we can use the material from that session in preparing our reports in this session.
Fourth, the committee will therefore not have to vote on motions to re-establish documentation received for these studies. That was done in the House, and it's helpful for this committee.
We will now move to routine motions, questioning of witnesses and other motions. Go to the routine motions of the working document for finance committee members. You have in front of you the first ones that were adopted in the last session. We have motions on the service of analysts from the Library of Parliament, the subcommittee on agenda and procedure, reduced quorum, and distribution of documents.
Ms. Nash.
11:55 a.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Chair, first of all, congratulations on your re-election.
Can you just tell us overall whether these are the same routine motions in general that we had adopted at the last committee? Maybe you could highlight changes if there are any.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
We can deal with them in groups. We'll deal with it right to the questioning of witnesses. My understanding is those are exactly the same as the last session.
Do we want to adopt all of those until the questioning of witnesses?
Could I have someone move that? Mr. Hoback.
(Motion agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])
We have other motions.
If you turn to page 3, we have PBO and private members' bills. This is the costing of private members' bills. We have the Parliamentary Budget Office and economic and fiscal outlook. We have the annual update on tax change recommendations by Finance Canada. I think all members wanted that one last time. There's the tabling of motions outside the normal finance committee schedule. This was in the last session as well, to ensure that because we do have extra time, the committee adds that the chair not receive any motions outside of regular finance committee time.
Those were all in the last session as well. Could I get someone to move those motions? Mr. Van Kesteren.
(Motions agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])
We have a new motion. We put all of our briefs on the finance committee website. I think we were the first parliamentary committee in Canada to do so. We put all briefs on our website, being the open and transparent committee that we are. The motion is that briefs received by the committee and related to its studies be published on the finance committee website.
Could I have a mover?
Do you have a question on that, Mr. Brison?
11:55 a.m.
Liberal
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
How many are actually going to the website? I don't know that offhand. I could endeavour to find out. Perhaps we could put that question to IT.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Does someone want to move that motion? Mr. Aspin will.
(Motion agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])
The next one deals with pre-budget consultations hearings. This is a new draft motion. It's shorter than the last one. As you will recall, the last one asked that briefs be prepared a certain number of days before witnesses had to appear.
My recommendation is that we adopt the shorter one. Because of a shortened time period, I don't know if it's fair to ask witnesses who are going to present to the committee to do so. Many of them obviously have submitted briefs online. My understanding is those briefs will be online today. The briefs we received in the summer will be on the finance committee website today. I wanted to shorten this because of the timelines. If someone did not do a brief and members of the committee wanted to invite someone who did not do one, it would be too tight of a timeline.
It's the exact same subject areas in this motion as in last session's motion. Are there any questions? It is moved by Ms. Nash.
(Motion agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])
Thank you.
I've dealt with routine motions, questioning of witnesses, and other motions.
Are there any other motions I need to deal with?
Mr. Saxton.
11:55 a.m.
Conservative
Andrew Saxton Conservative North Vancouver, BC
Chair, I have a new motion that I'd like to present to the committee. It's new, but it's also similar, if not identical, to what's been proposed in the past around this time. I'd like to read my proposed new motion to the committee, Chair.
I move that
(a) the Clerk of the Committee shall, upon the Committee receiving such an Order of Reference, write to each Member who is not a member of a caucus represented on the Committee to invite those Members to file, in a letter to the Chair of the Committee, in both official languages, any amendments to the Bill, which is the subject of the said Order, which they would suggest that the Committee consider;
(b) suggested amendments filed, pursuant to paragraph (a), at least 48 hours prior to the start of clause-by-clause consideration of the Bill to which the amendments relate shall be deemed to be proposed during the said consideration, provided that the Committee may, by motion, vary this deadline in respect of a given Bill;
(c) during the clause-by-clause consideration of a Bill, the Chair shall allow a Member who filed suggested amendments, pursuant to paragraph (a), an opportunity to make brief representations in support of them.
I'm sure everybody's familiar with the rationale behind this, but I'll share it with you. It makes bill consideration in the committee fairer. It allows everyone to have their say without holding up the clause-by-clause consideration of this committee, and it still allows parliamentarians not represented on our committee to participate in the legislative process. It allows us to really streamline the process when our committee reaches clause-by-clause stage.
I have a written copy in both official languages that I would like to give to the clerk now, please.
Noon
Conservative
Andrew Saxton Conservative North Vancouver, BC
I don't have enough copies. I have four copies. Maybe we can make more.
I should just note that it's my understanding that the committee has adopted motions similar to this in the past.
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Thank you.
The motion is in order. We'll have discussion on the motion.
Ms. Nash.
Noon
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Is this a motion that's being presented to other committees? Are you are aware of whether that is happening?
Noon
Conservative
Andrew Saxton Conservative North Vancouver, BC
I'm not aware if it's being presented to other committees.
Noon
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
I think this motion was presented to the procedure and House affairs committee, was it not?
Does anyone else have anything to add on that? No?
Noon
Conservative
Andrew Saxton Conservative North Vancouver, BC
I just heard that it is being presented at all other committees.
