Procedure and House Affairs Committee on May 1st, 2014

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Hearing no discussion on G-21—

Sorry?

[Craig Scott, NDP, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

I'd just like to acknowledge that this is one of the changes the minister announced, and that it's indeed appreciated that it's extending from one year to three years. I think that's much more reasonable. The one year would have been a serious problem, because I think there's one part of this section.... This is division 2. In division 2, the scripts and recordings are not actually forwarded to the CRTC. The CRTC, under the current act, does not get hold of these. So the only way they can be accessed is to make sure those who have them retain them. One year was really ridiculous, so three years is a minimum. We will be moving an amendment to try to get the scripts and recordings sent to the CRTC, but in a minimalist framework. This is a minimal change that we will be voting for.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Okay.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Chair, I have a question, maybe to staff.

I'm going on the assumption that this motion won't carry, but whether it does or not, right now, whether it's one year or three, the provider has those records. If it changes to three—just to make it easier—and that company goes bankrupt halfway through the second year of the three years, what happens to that information?

If the CRTC doesn't have it right from the get-go—obviously I'm laying the groundwork for our amendment that is coming up—then merely saying that the information, the script, the audio recordings, all of it should be forwarded to the CRTC immediately, for a whole host of reasons, one of which is that I'm wondering what happens in the event of a bankruptcy....

[Marc Chénier]

Unfortunately, I don't have an answer for the committee at this time.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Theoretically, if they went bankrupt and the information was not there, has anybody violated a law?

[Natasha Kim]

I imagine it would depend on provincial rules around what happens to companies after that sort of event arises, or on federal rules around such a case. There would be someone who would be responsible as part of that company, but we're not aware.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

It would seem to me, Chair, with respect, that they have given the best answer they can to the best of their ability, but it doesn't give us the guarantee. There's a good chance, I'm hearing so far, that even if we go to three years and the company goes bankrupt, all of that information could be lost.

Again, putting on the tinfoil hat that Mr. Lukiwski would like to have fitted for all of us, what would stop someone from setting up a company at the beginning to do it with the sole intent of having it disappear after 18 months? There go the records. Now what do you do, I ask the staff through you, Chair?

[Marc Chénier]

Unfortunately, again we're unable to assist the committee on this issue.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

So there are clearly, Chair, all kinds of loopholes here. I would hope, since we know that the government is very sincere about wanting to make sure these records are kept, that somewhere there would be an amendment to ensure that under no condition can this information disappear—unless, of course, they vote for our amendment, which says that all that information is sent to the CRTC right from the get-go, and then we don't have a problem.

I would hope the government would support that, or have their own amendment. Certainly they wouldn't leave something as potentially blatant as this, in terms of potential fraud, as wide open as it seems to be here, Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Mr. Christopherson, I'll remember that you've already spoken to that amendment when we get to it.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

I can still speak to it, Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

Of course you can.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

I just can't repeat myself. I know how those rules work, as you recall.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

We're on amendment G-21.

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK]

I'm not sure I detect real sincerity in those comments.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

There wasn't much there, was there?

On amendment G-21—

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

But there was a credible point there.

[Voices]

Oh, oh!

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Well, there was. This stuff could disappear and you could easily set that up, and there's no answer. They don't mind.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

The answer is in the vote.

On amendment G-21, those in favour please signify.

[An hon. member]

I ask for a recorded vote.

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

(Amendment agreed to: yeas 9; nays 0 [See Minutes of Proceedings])

[The Chair, Conservative, Joe Preston]

That has carried—

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Now fix it.