Procedure and House Affairs committee  Well, first I need to know from the chair how much time I have.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Okay, I'll do my best. I'm a Winnipegger. I know how cold it gets. My way of dealing with that is just to walk. I find walking is way more efficient. I'm not suggesting other people want to do that or should do that. That's just how I deal with it.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  That said, there's no doubt that the bus operation is a very complex proposition, for the reasons you've outlined. The precinct has gotten bigger. Committees are meeting in different places. Trust me when I say that, Benoit. I have had numerous conversations about this. It's not an easy puzzle to resolve, particularly given that the decisions around levels of service were made in the context of a general restraint era.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Well, it's not that I'm not sympathetic; it's just that I don't think we can start giving taxi chits to everybody who needs a ride up to the Hill. There's an economic reality to that. That said, as an employer—I can't speak for members' employees, since I don't know what arrangements are made there—we still have the service around the Hill for our staff to take the bus.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I'll turn this one over to Pierre.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Unintended consequences are difficult to predict, because that's the nature of them: they're unintended. With regard to reducing the sitting week by one day, there are in the standing orders right now several provisions that provide for fixed numbers of days on certain types of business.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Again, on that aspect of the question, it would really depend on what the member availing himself or herself of such parental leave chose to do. If the member chose to still carry out duties to a degree, then the impact on constituents would be negligible, because the member's staff would continue to function, and so on.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  On electronic voting, the House has looked at this in the past. This committee, in a previous incarnation, looked at this on more than one occasion. It really comes down to a decision by the House on how it wants to conduct votes. The House is equipped electronically for that to happen, but in my experience, the whips tend to like to have members present and voting.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I would say it's very close. I have to be careful because the board deliberations are confidential. I'll leave it at that.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I should add that this avenue is very promising because it speaks to the main issue that members face, and that is flexibility. It's sometimes unpredictable for members what's going to happen in the House and committees. They may not know from day to day, and this service is aimed at in fact allowing members to make those arrangements themselves on very short notice and have that service available for the number of hours or days required.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Just for clarity, what exactly do you mean by “what it would cost”?

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I was aware this question was likely to come up. I'd already spoken to the chief information officer about this, and he is currently studying the matter. As you know, there are security issues around access to the Parliamentary network. That's the big stumbling block. He has assured me that he will look into it actively to see if a solution can be found.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I did receive them.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I'll perhaps start, and Pierre can fill in some blanks on the parameters around which this day care, Children on the Hill, operates on the Hill. I am a former president of the board of directors of the day care service, having had our two daughters attend. It was started by Madam Sauvé.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm obviously pleased to be before the committee this morning to speak to your study on initiatives toward a family-friendly Parliament. I am accompanied by Mr. Pierre Parent, who is the Chief Human Resources Officer. One of our colleagues is also in the audience, the Director General of Parliamentary Precinct Operations, Mr.