One of the things I have observed about the supply practices in provincial jurisdictions is that many of them have a limited number of days. They allot a certain number of days and hours to the examination of the estimates; it's a finite period of time. Then, the government has in turn said that it will get its money if it can convince a majority of the legislate. I don't have as much detailed knowledge of the Alberta model. My sense is that going back a number of governments, they have had powerful caucus committees that are directly involved in the production of the budget. If you are in a majority government situation and caucus gets to review the expenditure plans and approve them in effect, then when these come to the floor of the legislature, there's not much to be said. The opposition can voice their different perspectives, but it's really a fait accompli at that point. So that's different.
In Manitoba, we have two committees of supply. They both happen in large committees. They are either on the floor of the legislature or in a separate committee room. I think it's 240 hours in total. It's the minister first, and then the minister disappears and the public servants handle it. A lot of the partisanship that prevails in the main chamber spills over into the committee setting. I used to take my Wolf Cubs to watch the legislative committees. I decided I wouldn't do it any more because it would turn them into cynics. It's just not an exciting spectacle.
There are committees that are exceptions to that rule; I shouldn't paint them all with a black brush. There are committees that get down to work and do things.
The other thing that some legislatures across the provinces do is meet when the main legislature is not meeting. When the legislature is adjourned, these committees meet. There is a committee on crown corporations—I think it's in Ontario—which has met outside of the regular session. That means that MPs can totally focus on that. Your parliamentary year is quite crowded now with your regular breaks and so on. I don't know how you could manage to build in a large block of time, but you may be able to find blocks of time, which I think is a useful example that comes from Australia, as well.