Environment Committee on May 26th, 2008

Evidence of meeting #33 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was amendment.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

Bill C-474, An Act to require the development and implementation of a National Sustainable Development Strategy, the reporting of progress against a standard set of environmental indicators and the appointment of an independent Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development accountable to Parliament, and to adopt specific goals with respect to sustainable development in Canada, and to make consequential amendments to another Act

Committee Business

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Clerk of the Committee Mr. Normand Radford

Marie-Andrée Roy Parliamentary Counsel (Legislation), Office of the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel

Joann Garbig Legislative Clerk, Committees Directorate, House of Commons

5:45 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

Are you proceeding with L-7 on page 13 or not?

5:45 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

No.

5:45 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

I'm moving G-6, please.

5:45 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

All right. Is there discussion on G-6?

(Amendment agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])

5:45 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

I understand, Mr. Godfrey, that you're not proceeding with L-7 on page 13, so that's struck.

Sorry, hold on. Go ahead, Mr. Warawa.

5:45 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Chair, I'd like to repeal subclause 5(2).

5:45 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

It is the second subclause. You want to repeal subclause 5(2).

5:45 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Yes.

5:45 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

So you want to delete lines 15 to 35 on page 3 of the bill and lines 1 to 13 on page 4, for the assistance of those who are working on the wording of all of this.

(Amendment agreed to)

(Clause 5 as amended agreed to)

(On clause 14--Petitions to the Commissioner)

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

Now we go to clause 14, and we have L-20 at page 40.

Mr. Godfrey, are you going to proceed with that?

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

I'll just check here. Yes, I will proceed with this. There will have to be, in light of what we've been doing, two changes made to this. This is L-20 on page 40 in the original package.

First of all, the amendment says, under subclause 14(1), “The Commissioner shall examine the report referred to in section 13”. It is not section 13, because we just eliminated section 13. Does that make sense?

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

Yes, that makes sense.

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

I don't know whether I have to get.... I'm now referring to an amendment we've already made. I can get specific and say subclause 6.1(2), or do I just say clause 6?

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

It should just say clause 6, because we....

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

You'll do the aligning of....

May 26th, 2008 / 5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

We have an editor who will work this out, and we're authorized to do that.

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

Okay, it is clause 6.

The other change I would make further down, in subclause 14(1), is to change “National” to “Federal”.

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

I see.

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

It would say, “implementation of the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy”.

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

Okay.

Clause 14 as it exists is about petitions. This is about a different matter.

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

That's right. That's why we've eliminated....

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

You could propose it as a separate clause, following clause 13, and then we could....

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

Whatever you like, because we just lost 13.

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Vice-Chair Liberal Geoff Regan

Then we could eliminate the old clause 14. Does it follow 12 now? It goes right after the last amendment, which was clause 12, I think. So that proposes to do that, right?

5:50 p.m.

Liberal

John Godfrey Liberal Don Valley West, ON

That's fine.