Information & Ethics Committee on Dec. 1st, 2011

[The Chair, NDP, Jean Crowder]

I would agree with you. I'll just get the clerk to talk to the eight meetings piece.

[The Clerk]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

The suggestion to identify a certain number of meetings is really just an administrative exercise for me to know how many days I can play with when I'm looking at the witness list and trying to fit people in.

There's no need to formalize eight days. If the committee wants to expand on that eight days, that's fine. It just gives the clerk a starting point in terms of knowing which days I can schedule certain witnesses on if they're not available on one given day.

[The Chair, NDP, Jean Crowder]

Mr. Del Mastro.

[Dean Del Mastro, Conservative, Peterborough, ON]

Yes, just to the clerk's point, it also gives members some idea as to how many witnesses we should come forward with and what the initial final witness list should look like. That way, if we get to the end of that witness list and we feel there's more that we need to know, then we can certainly call more witnesses.

I think it's merely to give us all a little guidance to have an understanding of how many witnesses we should be bringing forward. We don't want 200 witnesses for an eight-session study. I think it provides us all a little bit of background.

[The Chair, NDP, Jean Crowder]

Because I'm new to this committee, I need to ask, does this committee normally accept written briefs for witnesses who can't appear?

[Dean Del Mastro, Conservative, Peterborough, ON]

We can, absolutely.

[The Chair, NDP, Jean Crowder]

Okay, good.

So I'll just recap where we're at. People will submit their list by five o'clock on Friday. The clerk will put them together and distribute them to all committee members. We will have a meeting on Tuesday to review the witness list and confirm the witnesses; and the clerk will arrange that informal briefing with the Treasury Board officials proposed for Thursday.

Mr. Angus.

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Yes, just to clarify so we're very clear, it's not part of the eight meetings. Will it take place here?

I think probably what people are thrown off a bit by on in camera is that we made this decision that we were going to do everything not in camera, so people checking the transcripts might wonder why we're going in camera here.

When I was on the agriculture committee, we would get briefings on WTO talks that weren't part of the normal committee process. That was our work as parliamentarians so we understood what was happening in the trade negotiations. When we were on the heritage committee, we occasionally got briefings separate from ministerial staff.

It's not very common, though, that you phone Treasury Board and say you want a briefing on what's going on with lobbying, because it does seem so politically charged. We're in a bit of a different committee here.

I understand the offer of a briefing. Will it take place here, or do we go--

[The Chair, NDP, Jean Crowder]

The clerk just clarified for me that we actually have to have it as an in camera meeting so that there's no breach of privilege. If it's going to be something outside of the meeting time, that's a different matter. So it will be here or whatever room we're assigned to.

Mr. Carmichael.

[John Carmichael, Conservative, Don Valley West, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Just to support the comments, as a new member to the entire process I find the idea of having that briefing helpful to at least build some background so that I'm more productive in the process of evaluating the whole process, or the project. I think that's a good idea, and it sounds to me like we have consensus around the number of meetings, how we scope it, and it sounds pretty loose in terms of everybody getting agreement on getting this job done together.

[The Chair, NDP, Jean Crowder]

That's great. We have agreement.

Is there any other business before the committee?

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

I have my motion, but I'm not ready to talk about it today.

[The Chair, NDP, Jean Crowder]

Okay.

Seeing no other business, the meeting is adjourned.