Evidence of meeting #1 for Government Operations and Estimates in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A recording is available from Parliament.
1:25 p.m.
The Clerk
All right.
The motion is on the amendment moved by Madame Vignola. I will call the vote.
(Amendment agreed to: yeas 7; nays 3)
1:30 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Robert Gordon Kitchen
Now we will have the vote on the motion as amended.
(Motion agreed to: yeas 10; nays 0)
Thank you, Mr. Clerk.
Mr. Paul-Hus, I believe those were your four motions.
We'll go to Ms. Vignola, recognizing that we've gone a little bit over time. We appreciate the clerks, the analysts and everybody staying on during this time.
I'm not trying to rush you, Ms. Vignola, but please go ahead.
1:30 p.m.
Bloc
Julie Vignola Bloc Beauport—Limoilou, QC
I will try to do so quickly.
Basically, I am suggesting the creation of a special committee on the Canada Student Service Grant. So a single committee, rather than four, would focus on that and it would be made up of 11 members.
Do you want me to read the motion in its entirety?
1:30 p.m.
The Clerk
Yes.
1:35 p.m.
Bloc
Julie Vignola Bloc Beauport—Limoilou, QC
I propose:
That the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates report on the following recommendation to the House of Commons: That the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates recommend to the House the establishment of a special committee to hold hearings in order to examine all aspects of the design and creation of the Canada Student Service Grant, including those aspects dealing with the measures to prevent conflicts of interest in federal government expenditure policies, with the expenditures committed by the government, with the WE Charity and the Canada Student Service Grant, with the government's decision to choose WE, a unilingual anglophone organization, to implement the Canada Student Service Grant program, and with WE's administration of the Canada Student Service Grant. (1) That the committee be made up of 11 members of Parliament, five (5) from the government, four (4) from the official opposition, one (1) from the Bloc Québécois, and one (1) from the New Democratic Party. (2) That changes in the membership of the committee shall be effective immediately after notification by the whip has been filed with the Clerk of the House. (3) That membership substitutions be permitted, if required, in the manner provided for in Standing Order 114(2). (4) That members shall be named by their respective whip by depositing with the Clerk of the House the list of their members to serve on the committee no later than three days after this motion is adopted by the House. (5) That the Clerk of the House shall convene an organization meeting of the committee for no later that five days after this motion is adopted by the House. (6) That the committee be chaired by a member of the official opposition. (7) That, notwithstanding Standing Order 106(2), in addition to the Chair, there shall be one vice-chair from the official opposition, one vice-chair from the Bloc Québécois, and one vice-chair from the New Democratic Party. (8) That the quorum of the committee be as provided for in Standing Order 118 and that the Chair be authorized to hold meetings to receive evidence and to have that evidence printed when a quorum is not present, provided that at least four members are present, including one member of the opposition and one member of the government. (9) That the committee be granted all the powers of a standing committee, as provided in the Standing Orders, as well as the power to travel, both inside and outside Canada, accompanied by the necessary staff. (10) That the committee have the power to authorize video and audio broadcasting of any or all of its proceedings. (11) That the special committee review all the work of the following committee: the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, the Standing Committee on Finance, the Standing Committee on Official Languages and the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates, and that the documents and testimony produced by each of those committees be deemed to have been produced as part of the work of this committee. (12) That the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Diversity and Inclusion and Youth, and the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons be among the witnesses called to testify before the committee at the committee's convenience.
1:40 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Robert Gordon Kitchen
Thank you, Madame Vignola.
I see that your hand is up, Mr. Gerretsen.
1:40 p.m.
Liberal
Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Right after Ms. Vignola finished telling us that she was a visual person and preferred to have these long motions in front of her, she then subjected us to one herself, which I find slightly ironic.
Again, this is quite a cumbersome motion with a lot of information in it. First, without the benefit of having the opportunity to look at this and review it myself, I'm curious if you can weigh in on whether you, as the chair, believe this motion to be in order, given the fact that it's requesting a whole whack of stuff outside the mandate of this committee.
Can you rule on that? Then if you deem that it is in order, I would like to speak to it.
1:40 p.m.
Conservative
1:40 p.m.
Liberal
Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Thank you for that. I appreciate your taking the time to review it and come to that conclusion. I can only assume that you had the luxury of having it in advance; I really wish I had, too.
There are a few of these motions coming forward and I can respect that. I think there is an opportunity to create the proper form to get this information that the opposition is after, and that's entirely appropriate. I know that the NDP has also brought something very similar forward to PROC, which is a committee that I sit on. I don't know how this would work if it were adopted, but so was the one at PROC. It would appear to me as though we need to get some type of consensus.
Personally, as a member of PROC, I liked the motion that Ms. Blaney brought forward, as it really struck a cord of trying to set the right tone in its objectives and then letting the committee do as it saw fit moving forward. I'm really interested in hearing from the NDP.
Mr. Green, I hate to put you on the spot, but I'm curious where the NDP is on this, given that they have a very similar motion to this, and if I can be completely honest, my preference is that one.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I've finished.
1:40 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Robert Gordon Kitchen
Thank you.
We'll go to Mr. Green, then Mr. Paul-Hus and then Mr. MacKinnon.
1:40 p.m.
NDP
Matthew Green NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
I would love to be able to compare them side by side. I do know that Ms. Blaney worked with her colleagues across the parties to draft something at that committee. Quite frankly, as you heard in my earlier motion, I don't know if I may be going a bit rogue from the party, but I personally was open even to exploring that at this committee.
I think, at this particular time, if we let that get worked out at PROC, which sort of sets the tone for all the rest of the committees, we won't get caught in a situation where we have these dilatory motions bumping up against each other. I just want to make sure procedurally that I'm not missing anything between the two motions that have been put side by side. At the very least, I would ask that consideration of this also be put out as a notice of motion, as mine will end up being put out, and that we get a chance to look at them and see where we're at to make sure that we're not duplicating work.
1:40 p.m.
Conservative
1:40 p.m.
Liberal
1:40 p.m.
NDP
1:45 p.m.
Conservative
Pierre Paul-Hus Conservative Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
It is a very interesting motion, given the WE Charity scandal. Clearly, we want to examine that in some way or another. As my colleagues are saying, we have to read the contents closely in order to be able to propose amendments. So it's too complex. I also propose that we vote to postpone the introduction of this motion to another occasion, and that this meeting do now adjourn.
1:45 p.m.
The Clerk
Excuse me, Mr. Chair. Mr. Paul-Hus has moved to adjourn the debate, at least if I understood him correctly. In that case, that question has to be put without debate or amendment.
Do you want me to call the roll for that?
1:45 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Robert Gordon Kitchen
For clarification, is that correct, Mr. Paul-Hus?
I interpreted it to be that once the vote was over, we would move to adjourn. I may be wrong on that.
1:45 p.m.
Conservative
1:45 p.m.
Conservative
Pierre Paul-Hus Conservative Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC
That's right. My proposal is that we vote to postpone the introduction of the motion until later and that we take the time to read it. Then, I am also asking for this meeting to be adjourned.
1:45 p.m.
The Clerk
Mr. Paul-Hus is moving to adjourn the debate. The question is on the motion.
(Motion agreed to: yeas 10; nays 0)
1:45 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Robert Gordon Kitchen
Thank you.
We are now at 1:47. I did not catch the French interpretation and I'm not certain that we still have our interpreters with us. At this point in time, I will entertain a motion from the floor to end the meeting.
