Government Operations Committee on Nov. 25th, 2010

[Siobhan Coady, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

Could you provide that? It's very specific. It talks about salary costs, accommodation, operating costs. I'd like to know which departments, and how much for each of those departments. It talks about set-up costs. I'd like to have much more detail on the vote 10, please.

[John McBain]

Mr. Chair, perhaps I could add some information.

[Siobhan Coady, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

Please.

[John McBain]

Those are ostensibly generic offices that are located across the country. I don't have the information you're asking for, but I have been associated with them in the past, in work that I've done. They're located in Halifax, in Edmonton, etc.

We can get the specifics you're asking for and we will provide that to the committee.

[Siobhan Coady, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

Can I have that rather expeditiously?

As you know, we have to vote on the estimates, and I'd like to be able to ask the ministers some of these questions when they get here. It seems that we're adding to the costs of these offices in a time of restraint, and I'd like to have more details.

I'd like to have it by next week--early next week--if I may, please. Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Thank you, Madame Coady.

That ends the round of questioning for this morning. I want to thank the witnesses on behalf of the committee.

Now, if I may, colleagues, we'll move to the vote. The question to be asked is shall vote 1b, under Privy Council, carry? For a point of clarification, that is a request for $1.4 million.

[Siobhan Coady, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

I'm sorry, I missed your comment.

Can we postpone these votes?

Mr. Chair, I would suggest that the votes be postponed until after we have answers to the several questions we had. I've just asked for further details, and we have until three days before December 10....

I'd like to have a discussion about future business and perhaps getting the minister and the Parliamentary Budget Officer here.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

I'm in the hands of the committee. Is there a will to postpone these votes?

Mr. Warkentin.

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

Mr. Chair, I think today we got full clarification on the votes that are actually presented to us. There were questions with regard to other votes, but votes that aren't actually part of this list. So I think we did have a full airing and a full response on every single vote that's before us today. There are other votes within the supplementary estimates (B) that there were questions on. We can have an opportunity to talk about those later, but in terms of the ones we have before us today, I think we've had all the information that was necessary.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Madame Coady.

[Siobhan Coady, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

I'd like to have all the information before we do these votes. There's no necessity to have these votes today. I would ask the chair to consider that. We've just asked for more details on a particular requisition for funds. We had questions that were not able to be answered by some of our experts who were before us today from the bureaucracy. I'd like to have the Parliamentary Budget Officer here. It's what we as a committee had decided we would do. So therefore I would respectfully ask to postpone the vote to another meeting.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Mr. Calkins.

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Wetaskiwin, AB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I was one of the individuals who had a question that wasn't asked, but the reality is the question I asked pertained to a particular department for which there is a standing committee looking at the supplementary estimates or that has the ability to look at those supplementary estimates. That would be the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.

Several of the questions that weren't able to be asked were related to infrastructure projects. Those questions could be posed by members of the Liberal Party, the Bloc, and the NDP at those respective committees going through the supplementary estimates for those particular departments.

This committee is tasked with a very specific objective so that there's not duplication and overlapping of these. I don't expect that this committee would be hauling in representatives from all across the broad width of the various government departments to answer these questions. That's the purview of the other 25 standing committees or whatever there are here at the House of Commons.

I'm fully prepared to go ahead today, based on the information I've heard, with our votes.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Mr. Warkentin.

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

Mr. Chair, maybe you can ask for clarification for the benefit of committee members. Was there any information you've documented that was requested that pertains specifically to any of the votes we are looking at this morning?

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

There's at least one undertaking, I recollect, from Public Works.

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

Was it with regard to vote 1b or 5b?

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

My memory may be failing me here, and I could stand to be corrected, but Madame Bourgeois had started to ask a question. You then followed up with that question, and I thought—

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

That wasn't within these votes. That was a different program.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Well, it was within the range of interest of both the opposition and the government members.

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

It was, absolutely, and something we can follow up with, but it wasn't included in the votes we're actually tasked with approving.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Well, certainly on some definition of supplementary estimates (B), that's true.

Are there any other...?

Madame Coady.

[Siobhan Coady, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

I don't know why we would have to rush to get these votes through today. We have until December 7, I believe. We have indicated at our committee meetings that we would like to hear from the ministers, we would like to hear from the Parliamentary Budget Officer. I just don't know why we would want to rush through these particular votes when we are going to hear from others on this very issue. Therefore I just respectfully ask that we have the information before we actually have to take these votes, but I'm at the will of the committee.

[The Chair, Liberal, John McKay]

Mr. Warkentin.

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

I think we're well briefed on the votes that are actually our responsibility, but if members are not prepared to do this today, we can move it to next Tuesday's meeting or another time. I just know that we're running out of meeting time over the next couple of weeks before Christmas.