Public Safety Committee on May 9th, 2024

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Read it again, please.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

The motion is as follows: “That the committee resume debate on the report from the subcommittee on agenda and procedure and his amendment, provided that once debate has been resumed Frank Caputo be deemed to have the floor.”

I am very much interested in what Mr. Caputo has to say on this. I'm going to make a few comments about the report from the subcommittee on agenda and procedure, because this is a time when Conservatives believe it is—

[Ron McKinnon, Liberal, Coquitlam—Port Coquitlam, BC]

On a point of order, Mr. Genuis has moved a motion to proceed to a different order of business. We don't need to hear about the original motion. We should discuss that particular motion and vote on that particular motion before we carry on with other matters.

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Thank you, Mr. McKinnon.

Mr. Genuis, you were going to read your motion. Could you read it out loud, please, for us, and for the clerk as well?

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

I'm happy to do that again, and then I'll proceed to respond to what was a substantive but not, I think, order-related issue raised by Mr. McKinnon.

The motion is:

That the committee resume debate on the report from the subcommittee on agenda and procedure and his amendment, provided that once debate has been resumed Frank Caputo be deemed to have the floor.

Given that I'm proposing the resumption of debate on a particular matter in advancing the case for resumption of debate on that particular matter, it's logical that I would identify what that particular matter is.

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

I have a point of order, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Go ahead, Mr. Noormohamed.

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

Mr. Chair, we have a motion that's been presented. It's the will of the committee to vote on that motion before we proceed with explanations and debate in respect of that topic.

I would like a recorded vote now on that motion, please.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

A point of order [Inaudible—Editor]—

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Are you done reading the motion, Mr. Genuis?

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Yes. I've read the motion.

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Okay.

Well, let's move to Mr. Bittle, who is the first speaker now.

Go ahead, please.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

No, no. I'm sorry. I moved the motion and I have the floor. The person who moves the motion has the floor to speak on it. Mr. Bittle is welcome to speak next, at your discretion, but I have the floor.

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Continue.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Thank you, Chair.

Having read the motion a couple of times—

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

On a point of order, Mr. Chair—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

—and I think it being clear—

[Taleeb Noormohamed, Liberal, Vancouver Granville, BC]

—it's a dilatory motion. There's no debate on it.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

No, it's not. It's not a dilatory motion.

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Continue, Mr. Genuis.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Thank you very much, Chair.

Having read the motion, and having committee members understand that it's a substantive motion, I am proposing that we resume consideration of another matter. Of central importance to that argument for why we should resume consideration of another matter is, I think, the nature of that other matter.

I would now like to speak to the matter of the amendment and why I think it is important for the committee to resume its consideration of it.

At the last meeting, we were presented with the seventh report of the subcommittee on agenda and procedure. As most members here will know, this is often a way in which committees seek to shape their future business. It's through a report of a subcommittee on agenda and procedure that makes certain recommendations about how the committee should undertake its business going forward.

Conservatives proposed an amendment to that subcommittee report. Conservatives proposed how we believe the committee should approach the unfolding of its business in the days ahead. Unfortunately, we were not even able to read that amendment before the committee adjourned. I understand that there were—

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

I have a point of order, Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Go ahead, Mr. MacGregor.

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

This won't be long. I'm just looking at our witnesses who are here for Bill S-210. I'm just wondering if Mr. Genuis can give us an indication of whether the witnesses should remain. Will we eventually get to them? I don't want to waste their time any further.

[The Chair, Liberal, Heath MacDonald]

Thank you.