Evidence of meeting #1 for Finance in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was meeting.
A recording is available from Parliament.
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
3:40 p.m.
Liberal
3:40 p.m.
Liberal
John McCallum Liberal Markham—Unionville, ON
--after we answer the questions they put in their letter. If there's more information that's relevant in the Budget Implementation Act, then perhaps we could ask them back again.
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
I'd just like a clarification because of the Nortel pension issues. There are a couple, but we're talking about the stock option one, where the people didn't...right?
3:40 p.m.
Liberal
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
All in favour of the motion?
(Motion agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])
Colleagues, I want to discuss the estimates. I want to mention a private member's bill that has been reported to the House. Also, for the information purposes of your staff, Governor Mark Carney is confirmed for Tuesday, April 27, from 3:30 to 5:30, on his monetary policy report.
With respect to the supplementary estimates, the current supply period ends Friday, March 26, so we do have to address the supplementary estimates before then if this committee so wishes. I just wonder whether the committee wishes to address the supplementary estimates.
Mr. Wallace.
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON
I would like an opportunity to take at least an hour, but not to spend a full meeting on supplementary estimates (C). I think it's our responsibility as parliamentarians to look at the expenditures, and this is one of our key opportunities that I wouldn't like to see us pass up. So I'd like to see one meeting set aside for that.
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
3:40 p.m.
NDP
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
I would also like one of the persons who works closely with us and who does our research to kindly check a technical detail for me. The first analysis was scheduled for March 1, but in fact did not start until March 3.
Will this late start affect any of the other dates provided for in the budget? The government missed the March 1 deadline, but the analysis was tabled on March 3. That was illegal, given that the deadline had passed. I merely want to know if there any possible future repercussions, in so far as the Supplementary Estimates are concerned.
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Do you want to know whether the March 26 deadlines are affected by the--
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
3:40 p.m.
NDP
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
Yes, but I want to find out, as a member of this committee, what is the legal effect of having missed that date. There was something called prorogation that made us miss that date.
3:40 p.m.
NDP
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
Our little Sarah Palins on the other side couldn't go rogue, so they went prorogue.
3:40 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
Based on past experience, can I make a suggestion that we have finance officials at the same time as CRA, instead of doing an hour each? Sometimes the material in one hour is drier than in the other, and we need more time for the other one. I think we have somebody else, also. I'm not sure which estimates we have, but could we just package them all and have them in two hours?
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
3:40 p.m.
Liberal
Massimo Pacetti Liberal Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC
It wouldn't be all of them. I'm not sure which main estimates we're looking at. Maybe we can discuss it afterwards.
