Environment Committee on May 31st, 2007

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The problem is that the motion before, as moved by Mr. McGuinty today, was not amended in accordance with the standing orders. When Mr. McGuinty moved the motion, he indicated that it was part of the main estimates. So the motion before us also involves the main estimates. The fact that the motion was sent to the clerk yesterday is not relevant right now. Understood?

So if we deal with this, there's nothing to prevent us from coming back and dealing with the other issue right after that.

Mr. Warawa.

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

My first question, Chair, was whether this motion was in order. I was told by the clerk that it is.

With respect to Mr. Bigras, I misunderstood what the intent was. My understanding is that he only wants to change the date from June 5 to June 7. I would provide unanimous consent for that.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Actually, there's a problem with that. The problem, Mr. Warawa, is that he's saying he wants to amend the motion as written in the notice of today's meeting.

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

Right.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

But that isn't the motion before the committee. When a member comes to the committee and actually proposes the motion, he or she can word it as they wish. In this case Mr. McGuinty has worded it differently from the notice. That's still in order. He worded it to include the fact that it's part of the study of the main estimates.

Mr. Bigras is saying he would agree to changing it to the 7th, provided this element was excluded. That's not possible without the unanimous consent of the committee.

[Luc Harvey, Conservative, Louis-Hébert, QC]

I have a point of order. Could Bernard withdraw his motion, followed by Mr. McGuinty withdrawing his as well? We could then start again with the original motion, and Bernard could change the date from June 5 to June 7. Let's stop explaining where we're at. We understand that it's all mixed up.

[A voice]

And Mr. McGuinty could present a new motion.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I think if there is unanimous consent for Mr. Bigras to propose a motion that would simply say the wording that's here on the paper--change it to the 7th--with unanimous consent he can do that. If that's the will of the committee, then we can do it.

Is it the will of the committee to accept that?

[Some hon. members]

Yes.

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

Just bear with me.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

You have a moment, Mr. Warawa. I thought you were opposed to pauses.

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

Things change.

Mr. Chair, a moment ago I said we would provide unanimous consent to change the date in the motion before us from the 5th to the 7th. We oppose the 5th. I don't want to go into a number of reasons, but I could if we have to.

The chair responded that we couldn't, and then a moment ago I understood that you said we could. We do provide unanimous consent for that.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Forgive me; I was mistaken. Imagine that.

I gather we have unanimous consent to the motion as proposed by Mr. Bigras. Therefore, the motion says:

That the Committee invite departmental officials from Environment Canada and Treasury Board Secretariat to appear at committee on Thursday, June 7, 2007 to discuss the government's climate change spending for 2006-2007 and anticipated spending for 2007-2008.

That is the motion that has been proposed, and I believe it has unanimous consent.

(Motion agreed to)

How about that? It took a while, but there we are.

For the edification of the committee, the study next Thursday will be pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), which is what allows us to do a self-initiated study. Because it will not be part of the main estimates, we will not be able to take up the individual votes. I don't think that's any kind of impediment that we have to be concerned about. This is just FYI. The clerk has asked me to pass that information along to you.

Is there any further business?

Mr. Godfrey.

[John Godfrey, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

I guess it's deemed voted, because it was unanimous, right?

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

It was unanimous, and therefore it's been carried.

[John Godfrey, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

All right.

So I guess the question is if the clerk could perhaps just give us a reminder about the other items on the agenda so far, for the balance of our time here, if he could perhaps just remind us what we're up to.

[The Clerk]

For the balance of this meeting, or for the balance of...?

[John Godfrey, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

No, for the balance of the rest of our lives—but June will do.

[The Clerk]

As of right now, the only additional piece of business the main committee has given itself is Mr. McGuinty's motion next Thursday, June 7. There will also be, as you decided, a steering committee meeting that the chair will need to call for next Wednesday to discuss Bill C-377.

The committee hasn't actually set a new date for a meeting on Mr. Warawa's issue of gasification, because our initial schedule in May was changed and the steering committee has adopted something else.

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

Could I suggest, then, that it be held the following week? If Tuesday's meeting is cancelled next week—because many of us will be gone—then Thursday that week could be the meeting you just referred to. Thus, in the following week, the last week before the summer recess, we could have a meeting on gasification, either on that Tuesday or Thursday.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Mr. Bigras, and then Mr. Cullen, in that order, please.

[Bernard Bigras, Bloc, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Chairman, Mr. Godfrey's question is very relevant because we don't know when the House will rise. I think we need to discuss this next Wednesday at the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure. So in addition to evaluating the conditions relating to Bill C-377, we should also think of what we want to do in case we sit until June 22.

I therefore recommend that the committee mandate the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure to look at what we can do until the end of the session, in addition to Bill C-377.

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Is that acceptable?

Mr. Godfrey, do you wish to speak, still?

[John Godfrey, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

So that means there wouldn't be a meeting of the committee on Tuesday? Is that correct? It's cancelled?

[The Vice-Chair, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

That's correct. There would not be a meeting on Tuesday.