Procedure and House Affairs Committee on June 10th, 2025

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

Thank you very much.

Go ahead, Mr. Louis.

[Tim Louis, Liberal, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

Is this just for notices? Can I also put a motion on notice?

I can. Okay. Thank you.

I would like to table a motion. I move:

That pursuant to Standing Order 108.3(a)(iii), the committee direct the clerk of the—

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

I'm sorry. Give me one second.

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Ponoka—Didsbury, AB]

I have a point of order, Mr. Chair. I apologize to Mr. Louis.

Are these motions that are being put on notice, or are these motions being put forward?

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

They are just notices.

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Ponoka—Didsbury, AB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

Please continue, Mr. Louis.

[Tim Louis, Liberal, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

I appreciate my colleague's clarification.

I'll start again. I move:

That pursuant to Standing Order 108.3(a)(iii), the committee direct the clerk of the committee to invite officials from both the House of Commons and the Parliamentary Protective Service to provide a briefing on security risks, updates and other issues to members, and that this briefing, or parts of it, be done in camera, should officials recommend.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

Thank you so much.

The clerk will be sending an electronic version of this motion. I know we have a copy, but we'll have a more formal notice provided tomorrow.

Go ahead, Mr. Fergus.

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Now it’s my turn to give notice of motion. Here it is:

That pursuant to standing order 108(3)(a)(i) the committee direct the Clerk of the committee to invite the Speaker and House officials for an update on the House and its related matters.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

Thank you so much.

Is there any further business?

Go ahead, Madame Normandin.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

I would like to propose a motion for debate regarding a study of the 45th general election. I’m not sure whether the motion has been sent out already. As I understand it, you have the motion.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

We will suspend for a moment.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

Thank you so much, everyone.

At the moment, we're not in committee business. I am a mere servant to the committee. What the committee decides is up to them in terms of moving to that point or in seeking unanimous consent to go there.

We are not at a point of forgoing the 48 hours' notice. Should the committee wish to go there.... I see Mr. Calkins' look. I've given that look to chairs many times—maybe not quite that aggressively, Mr. Calkins, but I have been in that moment.

The other item that I notified Madame Normandin about is that we do not have resources past 5:30. That's the other side of this discussion.

My suggestion is that if everyone has motions they want to put forward, we can do that now and have either a committee business meeting or a subcommittee meeting next, and then continue forward based on that. I leave it in your hands.

Madame Normandin, you have the floor. If you wish to provide a notice of motion, please go ahead, but I'll rule that you can't move your motion right now unless we move into committee business.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

I would propose that we move into committee business, so we can debate the motion. However, if other committee members want to give notice of other motions, I am prepared to yield the floor temporarily, but I would ask that we move into committee business after that.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

I appreciate the hypothetical, but does anyone else wish to provide notice of a motion?

Absent that, I will go back to Madame Normandin's call to move to committee business.

Does anyone wish to provide a notice of motion?

Seeing none, we'll go back to Madame Normandin.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

I move that we use the 32 minutes we have left to debate the motion, if we can move into committee business.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

I see no debate on that item.

(Motion agreed to)

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

The motion has gone out to everyone, but I haven’t read it formally. It reads as follows:

That, pursuant to Standing Order 108(3)(a)(vi), the Committee undertake a study—

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

I have a point of order. If we are in committee business, Mr. Chair, should we not go in camera?

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

That's a good point. One moment, please.

We don't necessarily have to do that, Mr. Fergus. That's a motion that you may wish to move later. Madame Normandin has the floor. It's not necessarily something that automatically happens, and then we would have to reset.

Thank you.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Since it hasn’t been read, I’d like to finish reading the motion for the record.

That, pursuant to Standing Order 108(3)(a)(vi), the Committee undertake a study of the changes that need to be made in the implementation of the electoral process and the application of the Canada Elections Act in order to prevent the failures and breaches that occurred during the 45th general election, and that this study include, but not be limited to, the incidents that have already been made public, provided that, in the order listed, the Committee invite the following witnesses to testify for a period of two hours per block of witnesses: (a) representatives of each of the political parties who wish to speak on this subject; (b) electors or representatives of elector groups; (c) the Chief Executive Officer of Elections Canada; and (d) any other witnesses the Committee deems relevant; That the Committee report its observations and recommendations to the House.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

Thank you so much.

I see Mr. Fergus and then Mr. Calkins.

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

No. I will cede the floor.

[The Chair, Liberal, Chris Bittle]

Go ahead, Mr. Calkins.