Environment Committee on May 14th, 2008

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

As Mr. Godfrey pointed out, it is the placement in the bill. Where is the appropriate placement, and what are the consequences of having it at this place in this clause?

If I could have maybe a three-minute break to consult and then come back....

When we do go into the definitions of the precautionary principle, I'm going to be asking that it be consistent with CEPA 99, so you have that consistency to the legislation. It's slightly different than CEPA 99. I think it needs to be the same, because we've just done the CEPA review, which was very intense.

As far as the placement in the legislation, I'm assuming it's already in this bill because it has a definition. But if we could have a two- or three-minute break just to consult.... Is that okay?

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

Yes. It is in the definitions, in clause 2, which we've stood, and we will get back to that, obviously.

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

But the other challenge is that if it's not referenced at some point in the legal text, it's as if you could define anything you wanted that wasn't in the text, but why would you? And it was in the original version, so....

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

Yes, I see what you're saying.

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

But since the government has redefined what the precautionary principle is, it's the Rio definition, actually....

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

We'll recess.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

Mark, that could be a friendly amendment, or do you want it as a subamendment?

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

No, we can do it as a friendly amendment.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

It has been agreed to accept as a friendly amendment that we add “sustainable development”, and just for clarity....

That's if you want to. You don't have to accept that.

Go ahead, Mr. Godfrey.

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

There are a couple of interrelated parts to this. The first is that one of the things we're going to return to is definitions. The Conservatives have put forward a definition for the precautionary principle, drawn from CEPA, to replace the definition in the draft bill.

We were always going to accept that. That's a fine definition for the precautionary principle. But to have the term defined, there has to be a reference in the bill to the precautionary principle.

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

That was the point I was making.

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

What we're saying is that we will go along with this definition proposed by the Conservatives if they will, in turn, allow this to be reinserted, I suspect, the way it was originally. It would say “a National Sustainable Development Strategy based on the precautionary principle”.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

It is “Federal”.

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

Sorry, “a Federal Sustainable Development Strategy based on the precautionary principle”, and we'll accept that definition from CEPA when we get to it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

The question now is whether you accept that friendly amendment.

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

That's what I proposed, so I don't see any problem accepting it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

Are there other discussions? We're on G-9, and we now have that friendly amendment to add.

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

So we don't have to formally.... The amendment is her amendment, right? We're accepting her amendment. We don't actually have to vote, because it's her friendly amendment.

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

We don't have to formally do anything.

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

Yes.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

So now the issue is....

[The Chair, Conservative, Bob Mills]

Go ahead, Mr. Warawa.

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Are you going to withdraw the first friendly amendment?

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

No, I think that's fine.

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Oh, good.