Evidence of meeting #145 for Procedure and House Affairs in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was project.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:35 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell
The ministers too should be in this chart, where they have an effect.
12:35 p.m.
Hamilton Centre, NDP
Well, yes. That's why I said, Chair, that I heard there were at least four entities—FHBRO; the government, meaning the executive; the National Capital Commission; and the Speaker/BOIE. Then you could add PROC to that. We have our oar in the water, so that's five players.
Again, the fact that you can't make it clear is my point. I'm not expecting it to come back such that you need to go and figure out how this works; I want to see it right now. If it's a bit of a web or unclear, I'd like to see that reflected so that we can help provide clarity, because it's in the clarity that we'll actually determine whether we get meaningful input or not.
That's kind of where I am right now, Chair. I hope that provides focus for when we next take up this issue. Thank you.
Thank you very much for your presentation.
12:35 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell
I guess we could add the heritage department to that flow chart too.
12:35 p.m.
Hamilton Centre, NDP
Yes. Add everybody who has a say in the decision-making and in what order.
12:35 p.m.
Conservative
John Nater Conservative Perth—Wellington, ON
Mr. Chair, I would perhaps add that there are other tenants as well in Centre Block, such as the Senate, PCO, Parliamentary Protective Service, and the Library of Parliament.
12:35 p.m.
Conservative
12:35 p.m.
Liberal
12:35 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank the witnesses for being here and for taking the time to return to the committee to answer our questions.
The last time you were here, I was surprised by the little informed provided. We didn't know where we were headed. At least, that's the impression that you gave me. We would start by leaving Centre Block, and then we would see where we stood. That's how I saw things.
Mr. Aubé, thank you for providing information on the number of square meters in Centre Block in comparison with West Block. We can see that the support space in West Block has increased in comparison with the support space in Centre Block. However, you haven't provided details. Is it because the information isn't available?
12:40 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
You mentioned postal services and communication rooms. It's very detailed, but we don't know what used to be in Centre Block. We went from 570 to 1,441 square metres. I believe that the storage service gained space, and there must be reasons for this. The rest of the information is very clear.
12:40 p.m.
Chief Information Officer, House of Commons
We'll provide those details later, Ms. Lapointe.
12:40 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
Thank you. That's nice of you.
Ms. Kulba, at the previous meeting, you said that the decommissioning would take nine months and that it would help you know where we're headed.
Parliamentary business ended in mid-December. I remember that, on the very popular show Infoman, the Prime Minister demonstrated how quickly the offices had been emptied. In mid-December, I had the impression that we were removing everything from Centre Block.
The decommissioning started three months ago, and is scheduled to take nine months. Where do you stand after three months?
12:40 p.m.
Senior Director and Executive Architect, Real Property Directorate, House of Commons
We are about 20% complete.
12:40 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
You’re 20% complete, but we are a third of the way through the scheduled timeframe.
Mr. Patrice, as I understand it, once the building is decommissioned, then, we’ll know what the next steps are. Is that right?
12:40 p.m.
Deputy Clerk, Administration, House of Commons
I didn’t give any details on the next steps. Beyond decommissioning the building, we need to conduct some investigative work. That will give us information on the building’s condition, mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, and other structural elements. I can tell you that it will take a bit more than nine months.
12:40 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
Decommissioning involves emptying everything out of Centre Block in order to study its structural condition.
12:40 p.m.
Deputy Clerk, Administration, House of Commons
We need to open up the walls and floors to see their internal structure.
12:40 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
The decommissioning process is 20% complete.
Ms. Kulba, in response to a question from my fellow member Mr. Bittle, you said you were going to provide us with a first steps plan in January. I don’t think I received it. Is the plan ready?
12:40 p.m.
Deputy Clerk, Administration, House of Commons
The plan actually comes from the Board of Internal Economy. The plan had to be presented to and discussed with the Board of Internal Economy, which then had to provide direction. That direction was provided at our last meeting.
12:40 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
The Board of Internal Economy gave you…. You showed up with a….
12:40 p.m.
Deputy Clerk, Administration, House of Commons
A discussion took place, and the Board of Internal Economy gave us direction. Discussions took place and a decision was made. I am very glad for the direct involvement and ongoing engagement of members.
12:40 p.m.
Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, Lib.
That’s important, to be sure. As you said earlier, this is our workplace.
Mr. Patrice, I was a bit surprised when you said that anything was possible in relation to the 10-year timeline.
Might we be returning to Parliament in eight or nine years, or could it take as long as 15 years?