Thank you, Madam Chair, for your invitation to appear before the committee as it embarks on the second phase of its study of parliamentary duties and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The committee's order of reference asks that it look at what changes might be needed to enable the House to meet during this pandemic. It encourages the committee to adopt a gradual approach, beginning with hybrid sittings, and asks the committee to consider the issue of remote voting.
As I noted in previous appearances, through collaboration among the parties, the House has already adapted many of its usual practices in response to the current circumstances. For example, it has met with a reduced number of members physically present and suspended the application of certain rules to allow for sufficient distancing. It has authorized standing committees to meet virtually and has created a special committee, composed of members of the House, that has met in person virtually, and as of last week, in a combination of the two in a hybrid format. All of this took place with minimal adaptation of the Standing Orders.
In addition, over the past several weeks, the House administration has assessed our technical readiness for hybrid or virtual sittings of the House and their procedural implications. Last month I shared with you, Madam Chair, the committee and the House leaders, two documents showing how the House administration is ready to support such sittings. The solution has been developed in keeping with the guiding principles that I outlined during my appearance before the committee on April 21.
I am pleased to report that many of the technical issues around accessibility, connectivity, user-friendliness, security, sound and visual quality and real-time interpretation have been resolved. The success of virtual and hybrid meetings of committees, including the Special Committee on the COVID-19 Pandemic, which reproduces some aspects of the chamber proceedings, has demonstrated that it is possible to conduct deliberative functions in this setting. Therefore, the focus of my comments today will be on the procedural implications of virtual sittings and on the decision-making process.
As I noted in my appearance before the committee on May 4, many of the House procedures and practices could be adapted to accommodate virtual hybrid sittings. For example, a general provision could be added to the Standing Orders to allow the Speaker, in case of emergency and following consultations with House leaders of all recognized parties, to adjust the application of any standing order or practice to permit the virtual participation of members. This would be similar to Standing Order 1.1, which allows for the participation of members with disabilities. Such a general provision would provide flexibility as technologies change. It would also limit the need to change the many references in the Standing Orders that suggest the physical presence of members.
If the House were to decide to take this approach, the Speaker would make a statement outlining the emergency and how they propose to apply the rules.
An analysis of our procedures and practices has identified four key areas that, in my view, could be adjusted through this general provision. These areas are described in the information note provided to the committee on May 13. These areas are the presence of members, the transmission of documents, the manner of participating in proceedings, and decision-making.
First, with respect to the presence of members and in keeping with the exclusive right of the House to regulate its internal affairs, the House could indicate that it considers that those who are participating by video conference in a sitting of the House or a meeting of a committee count for the purpose of quorum. This would entitle all connected members to fully participate in the deliberations of the House committee.
With regard to the second point, although the tradition is for paper copies of documents to be tabled or presented to the House, it could be determined that documents transmitted electronically are equally valid. Again, the House has already begun to take steps in this direction, having decided in 2019 to accept electronic responses to petitions and more recently to allow petitions, committee reports and other documents to be filed electronically with the clerk during the pandemic.
In terms of how members participate in the sittings of the House, certain adjustments would have to be made in order to ensure that opportunities for members to intervene are effectively maintained while keeping order and decorum. In recognizing members to participate in different categories of business, the chair is already assisted by lists submitted in advance by the parties, although members are still expected to rise in their place to be recognized when their turns come.
In a virtual or hybrid setting, the chair would continue to use these lists without relying only on a physical signal from each member wanting to intervene. For impromptu moments, such as questions and comments, we could make use of features built into the video conferencing system, such as the “raise hand” function. If members participating virtually intend to move motions for which notice is not required, they could be asked to transmit the text to the table in advance, a practice that is already occurring.
The chair would continue to have the responsibility to preserve order and decorum, ensuring, for example, that members do not use displays or props in the camera shots and that members keep their microphones off until they are recognized by the chair. However, the committee may wish to consider whether additional guidelines could assist members and the chair in preserving decorum and dignity in the House.
The way that the House makes its decisions is perhaps the most complex issue to consider. The chair would have to proceed very carefully when putting questions to the House for a voice vote or when asking for unanimous consent so as to ensure that the will of all members is properly understood.
With regard to electronic voting in the context of recorded divisions, should the House decide to implement a system to allow members to vote remotely, a number of principles must be kept in mind. The most important principle is the integrity of the voting process. Members will want to feel confident that the system is secure and failsafe and that they're the only people voting.
I understand that our technical team has developed a conceptual solution for electronic voting that uses our existing toolsets and security platforms. It could be adapted to any requirements that the House might have.
The system should allow members to know when they are voting, what they are voting on and how much time they have to vote. It must meet accessibility standards and display text in both official languages. Finally, it should allow results to be given to the chair quickly and accurately. Such a system could provide secure notifications to members whenever a recorded division is to be held, inviting them to vote using a House-managed device. Since members will be able to read the text of the motion in an application, it might not be necessary to ensure that members were connected to the virtual meeting to hear the Speaker reading the question.
Members could vote at any point during the 15- or 30-minute period while the bells are ringing.
If the House were to adopt a hybrid model where some members are present in the chamber and others are participating virtually, it will have to consider whether all members should vote using the same method, so as to ensure that all members are treated equally.
These are but a few of the details and options that the committee may want to consider regarding the issue of remote electronic voting. Similarly, should it be the will of the House, I know that our procedural and digital services experts stand ready to assist in making the necessary adjustments to our practices to accommodate remote voting and virtual participation in proceedings.
My officials and I would be pleased to answer any questions that you may have on this topic.
Thank you for having me this morning.