Evidence of meeting #2 for Official Languages in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was meeting.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
It is the one about the distribution of documents. It is exactly the same as the one we passed in the first session.
Are there any comments?
Seeing none, we'll vote on the motion.
(Motion agreed to)
Monsieur Gourde.
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
Mr. Chair, here is another routine motion, this time about working meals:
That the Clerk of the Committee be authorized to make the necessary arrangements to provide working meals for the Committee and its Subcommittees.
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
Are there any comments?
Seeing none, we'll vote on the motion.
(Motion agreed to)
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
Here it is:
That, unless otherwise ordered, each Committee member be allowed to be accompanied by one of his or her staff person, in addition to one staff person from the office of the Whip of each party, at in camera meetings.
4:30 p.m.
Liberal
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
Yes. The other meetings are open to assistants, to the general public, to everyone.
Go ahead, Mr. Godin.
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
With pleasure, Mr. Chair.
That, unless otherwise ordered—
Meaning that the committee could decide something else.
—each Committee member be allowed to be accompanied by one of his or her staff person, in addition to one staff person from the office of the Whip of each party, at in camera meetings.
4:30 p.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
Rather than talking about someone from the staff of the whip's office, I suggest that it be someone from the party staff.
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
We have an amendment in front of us.
What is your amendment, exactly?
4:30 p.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
Instead of it being someone from the staff of the office of the whip of each party, I suggest that it be someone from the party staff.
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
If it is not done as a motion, it may be out of order.
It works both ways. You can do the same thing.
4:30 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Michael Chong
Mr. Godin has moved an amendment. He suggests replacing the words “du bureau du whip de chaque parti” with the words “de son parti”. So it would read “un membre du personnel de son parti”.
Are we clear on the amendment?
Monsieur Godin.
4:35 p.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
I make this proposal for a reason. Last time, you caused a problem. Government members brought someone from the minister's staff. I do not know if you remember, but he was not from the whip's office. He clearly did not work for Mr. Gourde. It was not a staff member of his. He worked for the Department of Canadian Heritage.
We just want to make things clear now, instead of having to argue later. We discussed this, but we dropped it.
In this way, the party will decide whom it will send to the committee. If we leave the words “one staff person from the office of the Whip”, we will want to know who the person works for. If they work for the minister, they will not be able to attend the meeting.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
If we use the words “his or her staff person”, they refer to a committee member's staff. It will be someone paid from a committee member's budget. On the government side, however, staff members can be paid by a department, because—
4:35 p.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
That member is not a member of the committee. The minister is not a member of the committee.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
A member of a parliamentary secretary's staff can be paid by the department, everyone knows that. Assistants to parliamentary secretaries are paid by the department; they are not paid from the member of Parliament's budget. This is because parliamentary secretaries have more responsibilities than a regular member of Parliament. If parliamentary secretaries used money from their own budgets to pay their assistants, there would be less money in the budgets that are set up to serve their constituents. That distinction has to be made.
4:35 p.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
In that case, it is not someone from the staff of a member of Parliament who works here. In my case, it comes out of my budget. If the person is paid by a department, it is not the same thing.
The amendment is simply trying to clarify things, that's all. With the amendment, as the vice-chair of the committee, I could bring someone who is paid by the party and say that, since that person works for me and assists me, the person has the right to be here. So I could use the same argument. The government's ability to bring someone here must be the same for me.
