Evidence of meeting #160 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 regulations.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Scott Reid Conservative Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston, ON
We have to send a report to the House with the expectation that nothing will happen unless the House concurs in that report.
Conservative
Liberal
David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC
Scott, I want to let you know that last week I briefly chaired the natural resources committee, and the Simms method is now in the wild.
Liberal
David Graham Liberal Laurentides—Labelle, QC
I've made it a precedent in other committees.
Thank you for that information. It's quite helpful.
On process, because I'm a processor, as you know, do we have a report ready to do something with?
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell
The report will be this: We report that we approve this; we recommend this to the House.
Liberal
Liberal
Ruby Sahota Liberal Brampton North, ON
I have one more question.
You had spoken about a comparison to other parliaments around the world.
Can you explain some of the research you've done?
Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel, House of Commons
Sure. We've considered the provincial legislatures.
Some of them will make no deductions to the allowance of members. In those cases, any absence does not result in a deduction. Others will have categories that are open-ended, like leave of the speaker, notice to the speaker, or extraordinary family circumstances or personal situations. Those could be covered. Some are explicit—maternity, parental—and some aren't.
In the U.K., there are no deductions, but they've put in place, on a pilot project, a system of proxy voting. They've also considered the impact on the House itself.
Liberal
Ruby Sahota Liberal Brampton North, ON
Proxy voting is given to members who are on some kind of leave, and only under that circumstance.
Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel, House of Commons
It's a system in a temporary standing order that the U.K. House has put in place.
As indicated in the letter from PROC, this is something that this committee may wish to consider in a subsequent report.
Liberal
Ruby Sahota Liberal Brampton North, ON
In your opinion, is this the simplest way of dealing with it, rather than providing for numerous other exceptions, family circumstances, and then...?
My gut would say that most people, if they're in a certain situation, could figure out a way to justify it within a certain category anyway, if we were to provide other categories.
Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel, House of Commons
Well, that's the proposal that was put to the board in an attempt to meet the intent of section 59.1 of the Parliament of Canada Act and also the recommendation from this committee. In my view, it's something that would achieve that objective.
Director, Members’ HR Services, House of Commons
I might just add, too, that with the 21 days, presumably some of these other types of cases could be met with those 21 days that are already there.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell
Thank you.
Mr. Reid, did you want to be on the list even though you don't have a bow tie on bow tie day?
Conservative
Scott Reid Conservative Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston, ON
That would be a dangerous precedent.
I think the answer is that I was trying to respond to David.
Conservative
Scott Reid Conservative Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston, ON
I think it's all being resolved and getting straightened out by our staff.
Liberal
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Larry Bagnell
Are there any other comments before we decide?
Okay. We'll vote on the report that members have been given.
Are you voting or commenting, Ms. Moore?