Mr. Chair, I'd like to move the following motion before the committee:
That the Committee hold hearings on the conduct of public office holders in relation to the handling of the repayment of Senate expenses by Senator Mike Duffy and the conduct of officials in the Prime Minister's Office in this process, and that the witness list include but not be limited to: Nigel Wright; Benjamin Perrin; Right Honourable Stephen Harper, Prime Minister; Ray Novak;
And that, in the context of this study, the Committee table a report in the House asking that the House send a message to the Senate requesting the appearance before the Committee of the following senators: Senator Mike Duffy; Senator David Tkachuk; Senator Marjory LeBreton.
The reason I move this motion is that it is critically important that this committee be immediately seized with this issue, and the government has actually scheduled time allocation votes during our proceedings, which will block this motion before the end of the meeting. This is no coincidence. I'm also forced to move my motion now because the Conservatives will undoubtedly move the meeting behind closed doors to deal with my motion, as they do with most, time and time again, preventing Canadians from seeing Conservative MPs carry out orders of the Prime Minister to stifle dissent.
The conduct of public office holders in relation to the handling of the repayment of Senate expenses by Senator Mike Duffy and the conduct of officials in the Prime Minister's Office in this process go to the heart and the trust of Canadians' need to have a democratic institution—