Thank you, Chair.
The rules say some specific things, and we have to be guided by the rules. I'm a big stickler for that concept, because the rules protect our privileges. They protect our democratic institutions, and they prescribe the mix between majority and minority.
To what Mr. Blaikie said, the reality of the rules is that it is not for committees or chairs of committees to provide the remedy. If there was a matter of privilege that was violated, then the chair's responsibility would be to rule as to whether or not a privilege is engaged, whether or not it's a matter of privilege, which is a form of the prima facie privilege ruling that the Speaker makes. After that, the committee may consider a report to the House, which brings the matter of privilege to the attention of the House.
Now, the chair may rule that it is a matter of privilege, but the committee may decide not to report it to the House. The committee can consider other options at the time, but the chair has to make a ruling on privilege. It is not for the chair to provide the remedy. It is for the Speaker and it is for the House as a whole to provide that remedy.
I think it is reasonable that the committee is allowing this vote to take place again. I think that's probably something the committee would take into consideration in determining whether or not to report this matter to the House, but to say that the committee has come up with a remedy or that the chair has come up with a remedy is just not consistent with the rules in terms of the way these things are supposed to be adjudicated.
Second, I remain unclear about whether the chair has actually made a ruling. The chair has to say whether or not this is a matter that engages with the privileges of members. The chair said at certain points that he had made a ruling. Mr. Blaikie said that the chair may make a ruling later on. The chair must make a ruling, and he must be clear about what his ruling is. Then the committee will proceed on the basis of that ruling. It's a simple thing. There's no way to get around it; it is established in the rules.
We need to hear a ruling from the chair on the matter of privilege, and then the committee can decide whether to dispose of this matter by referring it to the House or by taking other actions. The committee has options available to it, one way or the other. The matter of privilege, however, requires a ruling, which the committee will then consider, and—