Finance Committee on Dec. 8th, 2009

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

That's good. It will take me another hour to explain it to the Liberals.

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

We'll see if we can reduce the noise, but I'll ask you to continue.

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

The noise is pleasant compared with what we're hearing.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[Massimo Pacetti, Liberal, Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC]

Mr. Chair, perhaps we can take a recess for 45 minutes and come back to see if we can get the noise reduced at that point.

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

We're not going to take a recess for 45 minutes.

Can I ask somebody on the Liberal side to see if they can get the noise reduced?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

I don't think they'll want to reduce the noise. They're having a good time. It's Christmas.

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

It is, as Mr. Mulcair pointed out, a parliamentary committee.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Chair, I'm making this a question of the privilege of this committee. We are working tonight. This is the finance committee of the Parliament of Canada. We can't work with what's going on out there. I would ask you to use your authority to ensure we're able to do our work as parliamentarians, which is what we're paid to do.

If some people in the Liberal Party are having a party out there, that's their business. We have work to do. This is a major tax grab of billions of dollars on the backs of hard-working Canadians. If the Liberals are taking their usual “let them eat cake” approach, that's a shame, but we want to do our jobs and we want to be able to do them properly.

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Mr. Chair--

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

Hold on, I think there's a fair point being made. I will ask someone on the Liberal side to ask them to keep their noise down.

Mr. McCallum.

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Mr. Chair, I don't think any of us in this room are having the slightest trouble hearing Mr. Mulcair.

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Macleod, AB]

I can hear him.

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

I can hear every word he says, and I think we all can. I don't really see what the issue is.

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Macleod, AB]

Continue, please.

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

Mr. Mulcair has asked...and I think it's a fair point actually. That is disruptive to the committee, frankly. This is a committee of the Parliament of Canada. This is a committee that is studying the HST bill.

I'm asking, again, whether there is somebody on the Liberal side who would request that they keep it down for an hour. We have an hour left at this committee.

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

Why would we do that?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

I don't understand. We hear him.

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

Mr. Menzies.

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Macleod, AB]

Someone just checked and apparently they're going to try to redirect the speaker so that it's not so loud.

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

Is that sufficient, Mr. Mulcair?

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

I didn't understand your question, Mr. Chairman.

[The Chair, Conservative, James Rajotte]

They're going to redirect the speaker, so it will not be as loud in the committee room.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

If they can do something of that nature....

We tend to forget. Unless I'm mistaken, I believe that—

[An hon. member]

[Inaudible--Editor]