Status of Women Committee on May 16th, 2006

[Maria Mourani, Bloc, Ahuntsic, QC]

I so move, Madam Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

It's moved by Ms. Mourani.

Ms. Smith.

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

I'm confused, because five minutes ago we were saying no more motions, and now there is another motion moving forward.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Ms. Bourgeois has withdrawn her motion.

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Yes, I know she has, but now there's another motion you just read out.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

As the chair, I was making a suggestion, because I need some direction from the committee to table the reports to get a response.

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Can we do that by consensus, as was suggested a few minutes ago?

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Yes, it's not a problem.

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

You are willing to do that?

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Certainly. We would be very.... I expected everybody was going to agree to it.

[Maria Mourani, Bloc, Ahuntsic, QC]

Madam Chair, my motion is clear. I am making a motion based on your suggestion, Madam Chair.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

She is moving your concurrence; she is happy with it.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

She is moving concurrence, but we're back to the same issue. Everybody is agreeing, but you have moved it in motion form. I was asking for consensus.

[Maria Mourani, Bloc, Ahuntsic, QC]

Madam Chair, a motion was introduced earlier despite the fact that there was consensus. So we are moving in the direction the government wants the committee to take and in the direction of a new culture that seems to be becoming the norm.

Therefore, I so move, Madam Chair, and my colleague seconds my motion.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

All right. Then we will vote on the motion.

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Could you please read out the motion again? I'm not clear. So that one is withdrawn, and now we have a new motion. Could you read it out, please?

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

It's been moved by Ms. Mourani, concurrence in recommendations of reports: that the committee concurs in the recommendations of the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth reports of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women, presented to the House in the first session of the 38th Parliament, that the Chair report to the House the concurrence in these recommendations and that pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to those reports.

This is a process kind of motion, which is evidently what happens at all the committees when governments change to re-table the report to get a response, and then the committee can, following that response, decide if it's going to do anything with it or how it wants to respond to that. That was moved by Ms. Mourani.

Just to make sure we focus on the words, re-tabling means you're reproducing the concurrence of BOIE's having to reproduce the reports in a multitude of copies, and frankly saves the government and taxpayers money by using the word “concurrence” rather than re-table.

That is on the table right now to vote on. Are there any comments to this motion?

Ms. Davidson.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Yes, a question to the motion. Thank you.

This is because I'm not familiar with your terminology. I don't have any problem with not having to reproduce the reports again, but is this motion saying that if I vote for this motion I agree this is the direction we should be taking? I'm just not clear.

[A voice]

Yes, we are not clear on this.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

You are agreeing to re-table the reports in the government and ask for a response from the Government of Canada to these reports.

Am I clear, Madam Clerk?

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Before we've had a chance to discuss them at all.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

They were unanimously approved by the previous committee. Right? Getting a response from the previous government at this point wouldn't be helpful. We need a response from the current government to these reports. We are re-tabling concurrence, regardless of which word you use, asking the government for a response to these reports that had been previously tabled.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

That there was unanimous consensus from the previous committee--we're not saying there's unanimous consensus from this committee on these issues.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

The previous committee had tabled them in the House. The only way you're going to get a response now in a change of government is to re-table them and ask for a response.

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Ask what they're doing with them.