Procedure and House Affairs Committee on March 18th, 2011

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

No, no, answer the question I put to you, Minister.

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Durham, ON]

I will answer that question, but I do--

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

I don't care about your opinions on other things.

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Durham, ON]

I'm here to give you the facts and to answer your questions. You asked me a question I have not provided the answer to, and I would like to answer that question first--

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Yes or no, did you direct Stephanie Machel to insert the word “not” from your phone when driving back to your riding?

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Durham, ON]

Mr. Chair, in full cooperation, I will answer that question--

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Please.

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Durham, ON]

--if I get an opportunity to answer the--

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

No, no, you don't get to pick and choose.

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Durham, ON]

--unanswered question, please.

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Answer that specific question.

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Durham, ON]

I will answer that specific question.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Stop.

I'll be happy to gavel and let us settle down before we move on. The minister is committed to two hours here today. I think there's lots of time for questions asked and questions answered. Let's make sure of that.

Mr. Martin, you will get this round, plus others, while the minister is here.

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

That's not the point, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

I have a point of order--

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Chairman, could I speak to that? That is not the point. I'm very deliberately trying to keep my questions very short and very succinct. Rather than answer the question I put to her, she wants to talk about some other subject. With all due respect, she's the witness here, and she does not have the right to remain silent. She does not have the right to plead the fifth in this format. So when a question is put to her--

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Mr. Martin, can we just--

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

--she has to answer it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Agreed, Mr. Martin, but we do not have the right to be rude or to talk over top of each other. So let's attempt to, again, talk through the chair--

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Fair enough.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

--and try to keep it fair....

I have a point of order from Mr. Reid.

[Scott Reid, Conservative, Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington, ON]

Mr. Martin doesn't have the right to override an answer before she's given it and then say that she can't come back and answer a question he asked earlier because he's lost interest in it. He has to accept answers to questions, even if they aren't the ones he wanted to hear, before moving on to something else. There's a real distinction--

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

That is not procedural, but thank you for that. Let's try to keep that in mind.

Mr. Martin, go.

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Through you, Mr. Chairman, I would like to ask the minister if she specifically told Stephanie Machel to insert the word “not” from her phone in her car when she was driving home to her riding that day. Yes or no.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Minister, go ahead on that one.