Would that be unsolicited?
Evidence of meeting #35 for Procedure and House Affairs in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site.) The winning word was advertising.
A video is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #35 for Procedure and House Affairs in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site.) The winning word was advertising.
A video is available from Parliament.
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
10:35 p.m.
NDP
Craig Scott NDP Toronto—Danforth, ON
If they haven't applied, but you use other methods to determine who might be interested and give them a call, you can't do that.
10:35 p.m.
NDP
Craig Scott NDP Toronto—Danforth, ON
It's literally the one exception. Here's what I would suggest. I'd have to frame it as an amendment and give it to somebody else to amend, but where it says, “the use of calls, as defined in”, we could say, “with the public by the use of live voice calls”. Then we're not talking about automated calls; we're just talking about the ability to pick up the phone and call to recruit election workers. Otherwise, the way it's worded, it falls under the definitions in clause 348.01, which include live voice calls and automated calls.
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
10:35 p.m.
NDP
David Christopherson NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
If they can't make calls to recruit people to work on polling day, but by e-mail is okay, knocking on the door is okay, snail mail is okay, but a phone call is...?
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
The problem is if it's unsolicited. It's not that they can't make calls but that they can't make unsolicited calls. I would suggest that if I'd applied for a job as a poll clerk, then it wouldn't be unsolicited then.
10:35 p.m.
NDP
David Christopherson NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
That's where I was going to go. Do we have to define the list they're working from, as to whether it contains the names of people who have contacted them ahead of time?
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Joe Preston
It's any sort of unsolicited call. If they pick up the phone book and start calling numbers and asking people if they want to work on the election, those calls would be unsolicited, but to me, if they're working off any list of employees, a call would not be unsolicited then.
That's just my opinion, and I shouldn't be part of this.
10:35 p.m.
NDP
David Christopherson NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
I'm just trying to be clear and I'm seeking some guidance from the government. If they can provide it, I'm good with that.
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski Conservative Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK
I'd basically underscore what the chair is saying. At least it's been my experience, David, in every election that I've gone through, that people walk into all candidates' offices or all political parties' offices asking if they can get a job for the election. We supply names to the Elections Canada's returning officer and they make those calls. I don't determine whether they're qualified or not—I leave that up to the people—but they just don't pick up the phone book and start going through and saying, “All right, let's put a pin in the map here”. They have to have a reason to phone people, and that's why the word “unsolicited” is in there.
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
10:35 p.m.
NDP
David Christopherson NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
I would ask the question. It's just so weird. What if it was somebody's brother who forwarded it through, but the individual—it's unsolicited to them, because they didn't ask for a phone call and they didn't offer. Are they prohibited from doing that?
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski Conservative Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK
No, “unsolicited” means from the perspective of Elections Canada. In other words, if someone—
10:35 p.m.
NDP
David Christopherson NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
Are they doing that now, and you're bringing it to a stop? Is there a problem?
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski Conservative Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK
—gives to Elections Canada the name of brother Fred, and brother Fred doesn't even realize his name was forwarded, that's still not an unsolicited call, because his name was recommended to Elections Canada.
10:35 p.m.
NDP
David Christopherson NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
Okay. Can I ask the question this way, then? What is the activity going on now that you're trying to prohibit?
10:35 p.m.
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski Conservative Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK
None; we're just saying that they just don't make unsolicited calls.
10:40 p.m.
NDP
David Christopherson NDP Hamilton Centre, ON
Well, why would you bring that up? Was that a problem? I'm trying to understand what we're trying to fix.
Are they in the habit of just picking up the phone and going through the phone book? I suspect not. What is it that they're doing that we think is not cool?
10:40 p.m.
Conservative