Evidence of meeting #114 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was see.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Green
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
I'm sorry that I missed some of my amendments due to clause-by-clause on Bill C-74.
This amendment is very straightforward. It's moving in....
I know there have been sympathetic amendments that are similar from Liberal members, but in order to incorporate UNDRIP properly, the agency's object “to engage in consultation with the Indigenous peoples”, this is added on page 77 between lines 35 and 36. It's to consult with the Indigenous peoples, not just with the reference to section 35 of the Constitution Act but specifically with a direct reference to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Conservative
Conservative
Scott Reid Conservative Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston, ON
It's making a reference to section 35. Surely that means it's already covered, in the sense that anything that is procured by section 35 is automatically entrenched de facto in the Constitution. Hence, there's no possibility that you could legally do this if it's in violation of section 35.
Is that not correct?
Green
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
That's correct.
That's why my amendment expands it to what the government says it will want to do, which is to also respect the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Green
Conservative
Green
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
Thank God there's someone here for a Harry Potter reference if one is appropriate.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
Let's get back to work.
PV-78 was an error. We had actually voted against it before.
Liberal
NDP
Linda Duncan NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB
This adds two new paragraphs, on page 78 after line 9.
Here we're dealing with the agency's duties. It would add in the duty to “track compliance with monitoring and reporting obligations with respect to the follow-up programs”—the Liberals like that term—“and report annually on the matter, including on aspects of follow-up programs that are under the control of other jurisdictions”.
Secondly, it would add:
ensure that lessons learned about the accuracy of the predictions made during past impact assessments are shared with the public and brought to the attention of those involved in relevant future impact assessments under this Act.
Clearly the agency should be responsible for tracking compliance. We've added this whole part about enforcement and compliance, so it seems logical that it would be the agency that would track and report on that.
There have been ongoing concerns by the public that when conditions are attached, there is no follow-up and no reporting on whether those are being delivered on. It would require reporting annually on what's happening with compliance with the conditions, and to report about resulting actions in terms of adaptive management of the approved project.
There you go.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
Wait a minute. If you want to record it, you have to call for a recorded vote.
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
We'll have a recorded vote, and I'm not reminding anybody again. I think I've done it enough times. Between the three of you, figure it out.
(Amendment negatived: nays 8; yeas 1 [See Minutes of Proceedings])
All right, that did not pass.
We're going to take a five-minute break. We'll suspend for five minutes to take a nutrition break.